THE S FILES
by TheAlteredDestiniesFan
Summary: Nabiki 1/2 - Side Stories. Nabiki goes to Jusenkyo, then winds up in a certain Amazon village where her next fateful encounter will occur. Would you please be there for the marriage dance of Shampoo and Nabiki? You are cordially invited...


Nabiki 1/2

(A Very Scary Thought)

THE "S" FILES

By

Jim Robert Bader

(Based upon the Altered Destinies series by Wade Tritschler and Others:

Inspired by the works of Rumiko Takahashi, All rights go to her, the Publishers

and Distributors of the Ranma 1/2 Series)

WARNING:

Mature Subject Matter Intended to deal realistically With characters in Adult

Situations. You Have Been Warned!

Tendo Nabiki stared across the length of the table at the members of her family

and waited for the inevitable to happen.

It came swiftly upon the silence left by the stunning revelation she had just

unleashed within their hearing. Her father-predictably-was the first to react

in an all-too-characteristic and excessively emotional manner.

"YOU WHAT?" he exclaimed at full volume, then settled back to lift his face

towards the heavens and wail, "My daughter is trying to drive her father insane!

What will become of this family? The Honor of our House is in ruins...!"

"Calm down, Father," Kasumi was at once reassuring and supportive, "I'm sure

there is a reasonable explanation." Even as Nabiki's older sister said this,

however, she looked no less stunned by Nabiki's declaration.

It was Nodoka's turn to speak next as she said more calmly, "Nabiki, I know that

you insist on the point of governing your own life, and we have agreed that you

have every right to make decisions for yourself in this matter, but aren't you

taking things a bit too far this time?"

"I wish it was that simple, Auntie," Nabiki sighed, "But I'm afraid the

circumstances allow me only one honorable choice, and I'm making this decision

in full understanding that there will be consequences."

"Oneechan," Akane breathed very softly, "Is Doctor Tofu certain? There's no

mistake on this?"

"None that I can see," Nabiki replied, taking the hand of the purple-haired girl

sitting by her side in silent expectation, "And Tofu-Sensei was pretty sure

about the tests. You know him better than I do, so I have to believe that his

judgement is competent. All I know is that Shampoo-chan has been having all of

the symptoms lately, it's just that I never would have suspected it. I mean,

even given the nature of my curse, I never even have believed that such a thing

is possible..."

"Obviously it is," Genma said with surprising calmness, "The question is...what

are you two going to do about it?"

Nabiki looked her mentor in the eyes and said, "What else could you expect me to

do? Shampoo is pregnant with my child. Of course I'm going to acknowledge her

child as my own and marry her to be sure that she's a completely honest woman."

"You can't do this!" Soun wailed, "The honor of our family...!"

"Is my responsibility, Father," Nabiki's tone was firm as she reached for the

glass of water that sat near to hand and calmly emptied it over her head,

triggering her Jusenkyo transformation.

At once her body expanded and filled out as she gained at least fifty pounds of

well-toned muscle mass, her features altering slightly to lose some of their

softness as a hard, firm line appeared around her jaw-line. Within the space of

one heartbeat the shorthaired girl with the pig-tailed braid in the back became

a man in form and every important sense that could be registered. Nabiki good

looks became an incredibly virile example of masculine perfection as her gaze

gained even more gravity from beneath a hooded brow that was as stern as it was

usually sardonic.

"As heir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts it is my right and duty to

marry Shampoo and recognize her claim as my wife and the mother of my child,"

Nabiki said with a firm resolve that brooked no denial, "I will marry Shampoo in

a private ceremony with or without your approval, father. You can threaten to

disown me if you like, but I am not abandoning her now that I know that she is

having our baby."

At the mention of the child again Soun threw his head back and cried, "Kami that

protect this house, I have lost my daughter and gained a son! Whatever is to

become of the Tendo name? Oh, the humanity...!"

Genma, for once, did not look inclined to join his friend in histrionics. With

more calmness than many people wold believe him capable, he adjusted his glasses

and said, "And what of your engagement to my son, Nabiki-chan? Does this mean

you are abandoning him to Kuonji Ukyo?"

"Hardly," Nabiki replied, "My claim is valid, and my resolve is unshaken. I

will marry Ranchan as planned to unite our families as honor demands of me, but

also because I want to be his wife. This is something I've discussed long and

hard with Shampoo and we are in complete agreement that I will marry her as

Kaneda but be Ranma's wife in name and body."

Again there was silence, broken by Nodoka as she said, "You would marry both of

them? You know that's not legal..."

"It's immoral!" Soun protested, "Nabiki, how could you conceive of anything

so..."

"How is it immoral, father?" Nabiki's tone was like a sword slicing away his

father's objections, "I love both of them and I am pledged to Ranma. Ranma

loves me, even though he has never said so directly. I have no doubt of where I

stand in his eyes and the very thought of being separate from him is

intolerable. But I am already married to Shampoo by the laws of her culture,

laws that we have argued cannot be observed by Japanese law but which are no

less valid in her eyes and the eyes of her people. How can I deny her that

which is only right since I'm responsible for turning both our lives upside

down? How is it moral that I can deny one in favor of the other?"

"But do you love this woman?" Genma asked directly.

"Yes!" Nabiki replied, this time without hesitation, "I do love her, I've loved

Shampoo since the day we met and she has done nothing wrong but to love me back

without doubt or hesitation. I personally don't know why she should love me

because all I've done until now is cause her pain and great anguish, but there

you have it, so how can I fail but to reward that love by becoming the husband

she both deserves and desires?"

"You mean you...?" Akane could not bring herself to say the words, and Nabiki

had to smile a bit at his sister's prudishness, though everyone at the table had

a pretty clear idea of what she was not spelling out.

"Yes," Nabiki confirmed to all present, "I have pledged to honor Shampoo in

every way, including the physical aspects of marriage. How do you think she got

pregnant by me in the first place?"

"And what of Kuonji-san?" Nodoka asked gently, "Does Ukyo know that you are

trying to have it both ways?"

"She knows, Auntie," Nabiki replied, "We discussed it with her earlier in the

day. By the terms of our present agreement we both have valid claims upon

Ranma, which neither one of us will deny for the sake of the other. We are both

Ranma's iinazuke and will remain so for the foreseeable present. One day we

will make a complete assessment of our situation and decide where to go from

there, but for all intents and purposes we are both engaged to Ranma. That is

how it will be from now on until graduation."

"But if you have Shampoo..." Kasumi started to point out.

"And she has Perfume," Nabiki finished for her, "We're both in the same basic

situation here with Amazon brides, only in her case there's little chance that

she'll ever get Perfume pregnant. As I've explained before, however, Amazon law

requires that two women who decide to marry must make allowances for a man so

that they can provide children to their families. By those terms Ranma is our

mutual concubine, allowed up to four brides, which pretty much covers the terms

of our current situation."

"But...how?" Soun asked like a small, bewildered child unable to fully grasp the

significance of these developments, "How could this have happened? It was

supposed to be such a simple thing, the joining of our two houses through the

best Martial Artists of the Anything Goes system."

Nabiki exchanged another silent glance with Shampoo then sighed, "Kami-sama only

knows, father. I guess you could call it destiny, right Sham-chan?"

Shampoo smiled as she took Nabiki's hand and squeezed it, "You is right on this,

Airen. Shampoo always feel it destiny to marry great fighter, and husband is

best of all she ever face. Is way of Amazons that Shampoo give husband strong

daughter. Shampoo glad she fulfill this obligation to Airen."

"So," Nabiki turned his smile towards his father and said, "You're not really

losing a daughter, you're gaining a granddaughter, and she's going to bear the

name of Tendo."

"So," Genma said in lieu of the stunned Soun, who was trying to process this new

bit of data, "The Anything Goes school is still in good hands. We should never

have doubted you, Nabiki-chan, although I have to admit...a few months ago when

this whole thing began..."

His tone trailed off as several angry glances were turned in his direction.

Surprisingly for once Nabiki's was not one of the silently accusing chorus, "I

know what you mean, Uncle...and I never would have believed it myself if I

hadn't been there when it happened..."

THREE MONTHS AGO, QING-HI PROVINCE, CHINA:

"I don't bloody believe this," Nabiki swore under his breath, turning an angry

glare at the panda that trudged meekly along beside him, "I am NEVER going to

listen to another one of your stupid schemes again, you old fart! This is all

you fault, you and your idiot training mission..."

The panda in question could not articulate a sound that would be understood by a

human, so he instead trudged along on two legs, holding a pack in one claw while

gripping a piece of bamboo in the other. Periodically he bit into and chewed

the tough plant fibers, which did nothing to ease Nabiki's growing fury since he

himself had not had a thing to eat since yesterday morning.

"You no worry, honored Customers," their guide tried to sound soothing, "Very

soon we reach village of Chinese Amazons where find good meal and hot bath,

change you back to normal, you see..."

"Amazons?" Nabiki interrupted, "Are you putting us on?"

"Oh no," the guide was quick to observe, "Nyanichiczu very real, live here in

valley many thousand year, know much lore of this place, much lore on Jusenkyo.

You see when we get there."

Nabiki said nothing to that, but he was staring at the ground some meters in

front of him to conceal the fact that he was feeling very uneasy and not at all

his normal confident self. Ever since that awful day ten years ago, when her

father had traded her for a boy named Ranma and given her over to a stranger to

try and teach in his combat style and traditions, she had been bounding from one

crazy set of circumstances to the other this latest incident only being the

capper.

In irritation he took a kick at the panda, who saw it coming and moved to avoid

it. In truth Genma was unusually silent, even given his current condition. His

Panda expression seemed to frown in consternation as if troubled by a memory.

There was something in that name Nyanichiczu that sounded disturbingly

familiar...

And, unbeknownst to them, their movements were being followed by a pair of keen

eyes that marked their trail and the position in which they were headed.

Clearly they meant to stop at that village a short ways ahead of the trail, so

their silent pursuer banked her wings to the side and headed off in the

direction that it had come from in search of some hot water...

Nabiki knew none of this, his eyes set with determination on the road

immediately ahead, seeing the edges of the village begin to come into view,

which at first glance looked like a hundred peasant villages they had passed

during their last year of travel, save that there was a rustic atmosphere about

the place that she immediately sensed was not of this century. It also seemed

that when they entered past the gates surrounding the village they found the

edges of the town nearly deserted with the vast concentration of the populace

gathered near to the town center.

"What's this all about?" Nabiki asked as she took sudden interest in these

villagers as they came into full view, seeing something that was very unusual in

the Chinese style of unisex fashion...color variations beyond the normal brown-

grey and olive green of Mao suits.

"Oh, Ma'am," their Guide replied, referring to Nabiki's actual gender instead of

his current appearance, "We very fortunate! Is annual tournament where Amazon

fighters compete for prize! Amazon women very powerful fighters, most powerful

in all China."

"Really?" Nabiki smiled, "I think I want to see this."

As they approached the arena, which Nabiki was surprised to discover consisted

of a very large log being suspended by ropes a few feet over the ground, she saw

that it was currently occupied two figures engaged in weaponed combat. One of

these two figures was a very large and almost masculine form wielding a huge

mace with both hands against a much smaller and slimmer opponent. That opponent

had a couple of bonbori maces as her weapons, but this was not the thing that

distinguished her most in Nabiki's eyes.

He blinked in dismay and said, "Am I imagining things? That woman's hair...it

looks like it's purple."

"You is right, honored Sir-ah-Ma'am," their guide responded, "Amazons no have

single hair color like other Chinese. No one know why but some have very

unusual coloring. One you spot is great granddaughter of Village leader

herself, very important Matriarch of Amazons. She compete to become champion of

village."

Genma made a sound that drew his ward's attention towards the cheering crowd of

villages, and-sure enough-there were others there with unusual haircoloring,

ranging from a simple brown or auburn to the more exotic shades of blue, green,

pink and even purple!

"I take it that's not a dye job?" Nabiki asked as she studied the purple haired

warrior, who was- amazingly enough-holding the larger warrior at bay, the one

who barely even looked female to Nabiki's estimation.

"Oh, no sir," the guide replied, "That no as common here in China. Girl always

have purple hair as long as anyone know her. Her mother also have hair that

color. In lot of ways she look like mother when she younger."

Genma made a noise that drew Nabiki's attention to something else of

considerable interest. There was a table laden down with food, and to the

famished travelers it looked like an all you can eat buffet. Their mouths

watered almost immediately and they began to move off in that direction.

As the smell of food caused his stomach to rumble, however, Nabiki kept part of

his attention focused upon the purple haired girl and her style of combat. The

bonbori maces were a clumsy weapon to use, but she had a speed and grace to her

attacks that belied this factor. Compared with her the larger girl was

stumbling and awkward. They looked surprisingly well matched for raw strength

but the lighter girl had greater speed and a superior technique.

It did not take long for the fight to reach a climax as the larger woman over

extended her lunge, giving the purple haired girl the opening she need, and she

was not slow in seizing the advantage. With a single mace blow she picked up

and sent the larger girl flying, then she raised her bonbori high in triumph,

only to turn a sharp look in Nabiki's direction.

"Wow," Nabiki noted as she picked up a rice ball and started to chew it, "That

girl has some serious strength, huh Pop?"

Genma did not answer, mainly because he was stuffing his face with food as fast

as he could grab it. His paws proved remarkably dexterous in shoveling it in as

fast as his bear-jaws could chew it.

The guide, much to Nabiki's surprised, turned a horrified look their way and

said, "Oh sirs...what you doing?"

"Huh?" Nabiki asked when battle instincts came to the fore and he leaped up out

of the way of one of the bonbori being hurled his way. Nabiki landed barefoot

upon the metal sphere and looked towards the now angry purple haired girl, who

was glaring at him as though he were the very devil.

"What are you doing eating my feast?" the girl asked in Mandarin that had an

odd country flavor.

"She ask why you eat food that prize for Champion of contest?" the guide

translated, "Honor sir better no tell them she girl, no until elder come and

make everything right again."

"Huh?" Nabiki looked at him in confusion, then at the girl, who was now standing

a short distance away and marveling to see how cute she was from such close

range.

"Boy with Panda," she snarled as she lifted her other bonbori as if prepared

to use it, "You had better have a good reason for eating my victory feast! It

belongs to me, I won it fairly! That food goes to feed my village when they

celebrate my victory. Who are you to take my food and leave us nothing?"

Nabiki risked a glance at the table and saw a sign that plainly stated that it

was the champion's prize banquet. She quickly glanced at Genma, who had an

incriminating melon in his paws, and said, "Pops, put it down. I think we just

made a boo boo."

"She say you no have right to eat food belong to her..." the guide started to

say.

"I heard her the first time," Nabiki said as she hopped off the bonbori then

shifted to Mandarin and replied, "My companion and I are very sorry that we

took without asking. It was not our intent to steal or deprive you, and we will

be glad to pay you for the food that we have eaten."

"Hmph," the purple haired girl seemed only mildly surprised that Nabiki could

speak her language, then her expression grew somewhat challenging as she smiled

and said, "You're a pretty boy for an outsider male, but you have a lot to

learn if you think you can just come in here and buy your way out of this. We

are Amazons, we don't allow men to come into our village and take what they want

as if our rights did not matter."

"Well," Nabiki said somewhat hesitantly, "Is there something else besides

money that you'd accept in fair trade? We were hoping to find a nights decent

lodgings, and maybe a hot bath..."

"You think we're running some kind of outsider resort?" the girl asked,

producing a laugh from the ranks of the gathered women who surrounded them,

"Try another village, they might even take your money, but first you give us

that panda over there."

"Him?" Nabiki said in surprise, sparing a glance towards the uncomprehending

Genma, then back to the exotic beauty before her, "What do you want him for?

Going to put him in a zoo?"

"Maybe," the girl smiled, "Or maybe we stuff him and serve him in place of

the food he's just eaten. He'd more than make up for it."

"Ah...no," Nabiki said somewhat reluctantly, "I'm afraid that isn't

acceptable. He may have his faults, but Uncle Saotome is a valued companion and

I don't think even he deserves that...much."

"Then you have a problem," the girl said, waving her bonbori under Nabiki's

nose with a clear hint of challenge.

Up until that moment Nabiki had not been too concerned with the matter, just

another instance where a misunderstanding had broken out concerning him and

caused by Genma. There had been too many instances where Nabiki had been forced

to pay the penalty for Genma's excesses. The pigtail braid he now wore down his

back was clear testament to one of those occasions.

"So," Nabiki said coolly, "What if I challenge you for the food we've eaten?

If I win will you agree to drop the matter?"

The question took the purple haired girl by surprise, but it was the guide who

showed the most visible reaction, "Sir, you no want to do this...!"

"You be quiet!" Shampoo ordered, and the guide immediately desisted as she

turned to study Nabiki with reddish-brown eyes, then slowly she smiled and said,

"If you want to challenge an Amazon then you're either very brave or extremely

foolish. My guess is both, but it's up to you how you wish to greet your

ancestors."

"By that I take it that you accept my challenge?" Nabiki asked with an idle

hint to her tone.

The purple haired girl sniffed with a confident smirk and said, "We fight by

the rules of Joketsuzoku. The challenge log, if you dare to meet me."

"Ladies first," Nabiki waved a hand and inclined her head in a slight bow to

her opponent, a gesture that caused the other girl to frown slightly before

turning and leaping onto the log with a single powerful bound. Nabiki arched an

eyebrow at that, then smiled and copied the leap, landing on the opposite end,

where he turned about to face his opponent.

"This very bad," said the guide to Genma without taking his eyes off of the log,

"You niece no understand what happen if she win. Better for her she lose, no

want have Amazon warrior give kiss of death to Girl with curse."

Genma looked at him, then his eyes widened by a fraction. Of course, now he

remembered where he had heard of the Nyanichiczu before! His expression grew

more concerned as he turned to study his ward, measuring his male form against

that of his female opponent.

Nabiki was also studying the purple haired girl with keen interest, sizing her

up the way he had a thousand other previous opponents. He at once classed her

as a serious above-average fighter, very strong and very determined with catlike

balance the way she stood poised on her end of the log, looking confident in her

abilities and utterly fearless. Nabiki considered asking for a weapon herself

then dismissed the idea as unnecessary. The Anything Goes school had a policy

regarding reliance on a weapon.

Of course the use of a weapon would be tacit acknowledgement of the other girl's

threat potential. She seemed capable enough of giving him a serious challenge,

and under normal circumstances Nabiki would even have gladly looked forward to

such a test of her abilities. It was rare enough to meet a fighter this near to

his combat potential.

Of course Nabiki also knew that he was fighting with one significant handicap,

that of his male body. In all important respects his new form was considerably

different from his normal female body. This had been demonstrated during the

morning practice session between himself and Genma, who in his cursed form had

the strength and mass of a panda. Both had been extremely awkward and slightly

off their feed, but with time and discipline they each felt confident that they

would be able to adjust to fighting in their respective bodies.

Of course Nabiki lacked the time to practice before this match, so he was wary

of the change in his reach and center of gravity and would have to compensate

for same. He had also discovered that his strength had increased proportional

to his greater body mass, although not so compact and lithe as his muscles had

been in female form. He estimated that his strength was half twice what he was

used to dealing with, while his speed and reaction time were slower by a

fraction. The mass of his body impeded the kind of rapid movements he could

normally muster, but he was still much quicker than the girl in front of him.

In his estimation Nabiki judged that he was still had a considerable advantage

strength wise.

Of course it would not hurt to improve his chances by means of a little

strategy, so Nabiki deliberately leaned over on one leg by a small-yet-

noticeable fraction. He also stood at ease with arms folded over his chest and

pretended general indifference. The very arrogance of his pose was meant to

convey a false impression while uttering tacit insult to the girl that as much

as said that Nabiki did not take her for a serious challenge.

The purple haired girl glared at him, then smiled confidently, preparing to

finish the overconfident boy off before the handsome oaf even knew what hit him.

Nabiki wobbled a bit as if not entirely well balanced as he saw the other girl

come in with a rush, bonbori swinging in the same style of attack that she had

used against the large woman. Nabiki waited until the last instant then swayed

back on his hips, falling away from the space where the bonbori passed

harmlessly before continuing on backward, raising both legs with a well-timed

kick that took full advantage of his new reach to catch the other girl by

surprise in her stomach. Nabiki reached back with his hands and caught himself

on the log, continuing in a full backflip as he alighted on his feet,

catapulting the girl over his head and off of the log as her own momentum added

speed to her trajectory. The girl looked stunned as she twisted in the air,

then caught herself in a landing that went well beyond the range of the circle.

Nabiki balanced on one leg as he turned around then cupped his hands behind his

back and looked down at the astonished girl, who was looking up at him with

disbelief plain on her expression.

"Oh, too bad," the Guide remarked at a level only Genma could hear and

understand, "She win."

"Care to make it two out of three?" Nabiki asked, privately wondering if she

could get a betting pool going by taunting the purple haired girl to attack her

once again.

To her surprise the girl just stood her ground and looked at him, then her

expression became odd. She vaulted onto the log, somersaulting over Nabiki's

head and alighted in the place where she had started, then she turned around and

looked at Nabiki, who fell into a defensive crouch, expecting to get a real

fight going now that he had proven better than expected.

Instead the girl moved forward without giving sign of attack, coming to stand

before Nabiki and looking up at his face with no trace of hostility in her

expression. To Nabiki's further astonishment the girl smiled in a way that only

accentuated her exotic beauty, then she reached out with both arms and slowly

cupped Nabiki's cheeks, tilted her face slightly as she stood on tip-toes and

planted a kiss on her lips before Nabiki could form a coherent thought on the

matter.

Genma blinked his eyes, wondering if history was about to repeat itself. He

feared what had happened with his niece in Hong Kong and realized that Nabiki

had never before kissed a girl while in her male body. There was bound to be a

reaction!

Sure enough Nabiki's eyes got very wide, even though the kiss lasted no more

than a few seconds. When Shampoo broke the kiss she retained that beatific

smile, then aloud she said, "Wo ai ni."

"Huh?" Nabiki blinked, then he stammered, "N-now wait a minute...!"

"Oh sir!" he heard the guide call out, "You no want explain yourself to girl!

She think you very handsome boy, is better you no try and correct her!"

Nabiki glanced at him and said, "But..."

Genma made a frantic motion with his paws, urging Nabiki to desist. She knew

the sign too well to mistake its significance over the mere change in his

outward form, so Nabiki realized that this was another one of those delicate

situations that would need to be handled through diplomacy. Instead he turned

back to the girl and said, "I'm very flattered...um...?"

"Xian Pu," the girl smiled, a name that Nabiki knew meant "Mountain Girl," which

somehow oddly fit her. The girl then looked earnestly at him as if expecting

Nabiki to reciprocate, and there was something so compelling in those eyes that

Nabiki-out of character completely-gave her real name instead of one of the

pseudonyms he usually reserved for such situations.

"Ah...Nabiki," he said, indicating himself, "Tendo Nabiki."

"Na-bi-ki..." the girl named Xian Pu repeated slowly, then smiled, "Nabi-Ki,

Wode Ailen."

"Ailen?" Nabiki repeated, then translated the word as Airen, meaning Beloved,

"Uh...wait a minute..."

"You will come home with me," the girl replied in Mandarin, tugging on

Nabiki's hand, "Since you are hungry and weary from your travels, I will see to

all of your needs and care for you and your friend, the Panda."

"You will?" Nabiki remarked, then in Japanese she added, "Interesting customs

of these natives..."

"You not know half of it," the guide said as he stepped forward, "It very

important you no tell girl about you curse. She better thinking you boy than

girl, whatever you do avoid hot water in her presence."

"Why?" Nabiki asked suspiciously, "What will happen if she finds out?"

Before the guide had the opportunity to answer the rest of the villagers came

pressing forward to offer congratulations to Xian Pu and Nabiki. Someone shoved

a slab of cheese into his hand, and Nabiki's famished condition decided for him

that there was no point in refusing such hospitality, especially when someone

else handed him a mug full of foaming beverage that her sensitive nostrils

confirmed of its alcoholic content. The cheese he devoured swiftly, the drink

he sipped more delicately, then coughed a little as he had greatly

underestimated its strength. He belatedly should have realized that a drink

brewed in the countryside was bound to have the potency of Moonshine rather than

the more gentle pull of Saki!

The girl she had defeated placed an arm around his waist and rested her head

against his chest, displaying an amazing degree of affection as complete

strangers came to congratulate her and Nabiki. He sipped more beverage from the

mug until Nabiki's head began to swim a little, at which point he deliberately

cut himself off and concentrated instead with consuming more food to balance the

alcohol in his bloodstream. He was, by preference, a moderate drinker, almost a

tee-toteler by the standards of Genma. Alcohol weakened ones judgement, after

all, and left one at less than their full facilities, a condition very dangerous

considering the number of people who marked Nabiki for a walking target.

All the same Nabiki was VERY aware of the girl who pressed her head against his

body as if to hear the beating of his heart. She was firm and well muscled with

a solidness that could hardly be denied. Her presence was affecting Nabiki like

the alcohol itself, and there was an interesting perfume created by the scent of

her body, mixed heavily with perspiration from her exertions. Altogether there

was no denying that she was a very feminine package just waiting to be opened.

A tiny part of Nabiki's mind reacted with alarm to the direction his thoughts

were obviously taking. It tried to alert the rest of his consciousness, but

like a foghorn in the haze of the beverage he had just consumed it came off as a

faint buzz, similar to the voice of his conscience. All that he was really aware

of was that everyone around her seemed to be happy, and when someone formally

asked if the meal left on the table was to be consumed Nabiki naturally said to

dig in using her limited grasp of Mandarin to convey a proper indulgence. He

was only dimly aware that Genma was suddenly nowhere to be seen, but that was

hardly a priority of the moment, so Nabiki instead turned his attention towards

indulging his undiminished appetite, affected by the atmosphere or revelry

around him and the girl hanging by his side without thought to any consequences

other than partaking of an altogether happy moment.

Unbeknownst to her Genma was having an experience of a very different kind,

feeling that sinking sense of a situation going totally out of control with the

consequences of same very much in his mind. It was almost with a start that he

became aware of a tapping at his side, and when he turned to look down the sight

of a familiar gnarled cane was enough to almost send him into a panic.

"Hello there," said the tiny figure of a grey haired woman barely four feet in

height and incredibly ancient, "You remind me of someone I used to know a long

time ago. If what I suspect is true, then we need to talk, would you not agree,

Panda-san?"

Genma swallowed thickly then slowly nodded in tacit affirmation...

Xian Pu was in heaven, or as near to it as she had ever been in her entire young

life. The contest had proven vigorous and challenging, but not a true test of

her ability. Victory came much too easy for her, the result of her Great

Grandmother's intense training. The outcome of the match had been a foregone

conclusion as she defeated one opponent right after the other, Cabinet proving

the only one to last more than a single minute. She had despaired of knowing

any real excitement until the strange boy came up to challenge her, and then

nothing was as she would have expected.

It was not the simple novelty of meeting a youth near to her own age who was

sufficiently skilled to offer her a decent workout. In plain truth the boy had

seemed so casual and matter-of-fact in issuing his challenge that she felt a

slight sense of irritated pride, even as she marked that the youth was very

handsome with a aura of something utterly mysterious that she found oddly

compelling. That such a boy would choose to believe that he could face down an

Amazon was brazen enough, but Shampoo was tribal champion and thus no one to be

taken likely.

The losing penalty for a male could be severe, depending on the judgement of the

elders. Normally her Great Grandmother would judge the fate of such an impudent

outsider male, but even her Elder guardian had judged the match so uneventful

that she had allowed herself to be called away on other business. The Elders

who were left to judge the contest had held aloof during the challenge, but once

they had seen the boy mount the log it was clear that their attention was

singularly focused. Quite obviously they had seen qualities in the challenger

that Shampoo had missed detecting. That could mean either good or bad things

for the boy, depending on their collective mood. Some might opt to go for the

harshest penalty, to Unman him, while others might simply choose to enslave him

as a thrall that he work off his debt to the village through manual labor.

There were lesser penalties than this, of course, but all of it could be voided

if Shampoo were to elect to deal a deathblow to her opponent.

Shampoo considered such a merciful swift strike, but something in her made her

pay close attention to the boy in a way that had nothing to do with his combat

potential. Perhaps she would spare his life and merely injure him as a warning

against others. As Champion it would be within her rights to decide his

penalty, and at the very least it would appease her honor. Indeed, to judge by

the way the boy was having trouble maintaining his balance it was clear that he

was no threat to her at all, so she decided to aim for his right thigh after

feinting an attack towards his head. That would end the fight in one swift blow

and leave no one in any doubt that the Amazons were a just and merciful people.

Her course thus decided, Shampoo leaped forward to attack, only to discover too

late that the boy was far swifter and more dexterous than she had imagined. Her

mace was no where near to connecting with his head, and before she could orient

her other mace to strike the boy's new position she felt the impact of his feet

against her abdomen, and then all at once reality was inverted as she found

herself airborne heading outside of the circle.

Shampoo had recovered her bearings and managed to land on her feet in time, but

the damage was done, she had been swiftly and effectively defeated. For a long,

tense moment she could not believe this sudden turn of fortune against her, then

she slowly turned around to regard the cocky boy, who was smiling down at her

affably as if in tacit admission that she had been thoroughly hoodwinked. For

the briefest of instants Shampoo felt the sting of her pride turn to irritation

at the victor, but then she studied him more carefully and came to the

realization that the boy had intended no malice. His victory, both smooth and

natural, had been the act of a true champion humbling an overconfident foe, a

tactic she could easily admire having employed something like it several times

in previous matches.

The next thing that penetrated her awareness was the law, which stated that this

stranger was now effectively her husband. Shampoo marveled the suddenness of

such a thing, then again gave the boy her undivided attention, realizing that

she felt not the least trace of resentment. The boy was her husband, and she

was more than prepared to accept this as the consequence of her defeat. Looking

upon him, it was suddenly very easy to find the positive side of this unexpected

situation. It was more than just his looks or the fact that he was a much

better fighter than she had expected, there was something about his smile that

appealed to her greatly.

So she walked up to him and performed the ancient ritual of the kiss of life,

along with the token words of acknowledgement that he was, indeed, her lawful

Airen. The boy did not resist the kiss, or the embrace that came with it. He

had a confused expression that showed that he had not expected such a reward for

his triumph, which further delighted her as it meant that he had not

deliberately challenged her with the intent of seeking her hand in marriage.

Such a contrast to someone else who so often professed love for her cousin, yet

who Shampoo saw to be a shallow youth who barely understood what real love was.

More and more she warmed up to the boy who was now her husband, embracing him

possessively as he did not draw away or make a move to exploit his advantage.

Shampoo had long despaired of finding such a man to be her husband. The sad

truth was that the boys of her village were mostly weaklings, barely adequate

fighters not worthy of her time or attention. Too many of the strongest and

most intelligent youths left the village early in their lives to seek out

fortune in much larger villages and cities, renouncing their heritage and the

lesser status accorded to males of Joketsuzoku. Few remained who were competent

fighters, and none who were her equal, so it seemed as if Shampoo was destined

for spinsterhood as she grew on in years ever closer to the dreaded twenty,

where many who did not have husbands were judged unlucky by their peer group.

Such a fate would never befall her now, Shampoo happily noted while burying her

face in her husband's strong chest and listening to his heart beat strongly.

Let the others of her village feel envy, Shampoo had found a man strong enough

to tame her, an outsider male by the name of Tendo Nabiki!

"Wo ai ni," she repeated softly and knew at once they were words that she meant

with all the fervor and conviction of a warrior embracing her destiny between

two heartbeats...

Nabiki, of course, was only faintly aware of the words being murmured below the

level of his collarbone, for in that moment he caught sight of a hulking

presence shouldering its way through the crowd. It turned out to be the burly

warrior who only technically fit the description of a woman. Without thinking

twice about it he interposed himself between this figure and the purple haired

girl still clinging to his person.

"What do you want?" Nabiki asked, her Mandarin only slightly slurred by drink.

"Out of my way, outsider, or you'll get hurt," came the snarled reply of the

burly mace wielder.

Nabiki coldly eyed the taller woman before inclining his head slightly and

replying, "You've got a beef with the lady?"

The challenge in his tone was only slightly emboldened by the alcohol. In truth

Nabiki was thinking clearly enough on a strategic level, sizing up her potential

foe with an eye to pressure points and likely weak spots in her defenses. If

matters became ugly he was prepared to take the larger woman down with crisp

efficiency. There was no sense taking chances with someone who was obviously

dangerous, and if the hulking Amazon thought to intimidate him with her fierce

appearance she would discover to her woe that Nabiki was no one to be

underestimated. The girl at his side had apparently already learned this

lesson.

The glare of challenge in the other woman's eye only lasted for a moment, and

then her lips curled to form a tacit smile, and then she burst out laughing

altogether and called to her peers with a boisterous, "He defends his love from

harm!" Turning back a more friendly glance at Nabiki she added, "Too bad for

you, outlander, you get a skinny girl with bony hips to keep you warm at night

instead of a real woman. Well, it's your loss."

Nabiki's mind was just fuzzed enough around the edges that the implied meaning

of those words escaped him. Thinking in a foreign language required precise

concentration, and without it there were nuances and hidden meanings to certain

words that were difficult to comprehend. He turned in confusion to his new lady

friend and said, "Xian Pu...what was that all about? SHAMPOO...?"

That was when Nabiki got a shock pointed enough to make him temporarily sober.

The purple haired girl was no where to be found and the crowd was closing in on

him from all sides, confusing his senses as he looked wildly around for his

missing companion...

"Well now," the elder remarked as she heated a kettle full of water on a wood

fired stove, "It has been a while hasn't it, Genma-san? Don't tell me you and

the boy traveled all the way here to China to look us up for old times sake?

Comb will be flattered."

The panda she was addressing had a wide-eyed look of something caught in the

headlights and did not respond at once, but when the old woman lifted the kettle

off the stove he made no attempt to move away but humbly submitted to having the

hot water be poured over his head. One moment later Genma Saotome stood

revealed as himself, Gi and all, to the ancient woman's critical inspection.

"Well now," she said in flawless Japanese, "You look well traveled, and there's

quite a bit more of you than I remember. Still bald as usual, a little older

and-I judge-not that much wiser."

"Madam Lotion..." Genma began.

"Elder," she corrected, then more affably noted, "But you can call me Lotion-san

if while we're in private if you like, I won't mind. So...it's been twenty

years since we parted company in Nerima, hasn't it? What all have you been

doing with your life other than getting in trouble, as usual? Still taking

lessons from the old master?"

"My Master?" Genma visibly shuddered, then he tried to put on a brave face and

said, "Oh, we took care of him some time ago-I mean-Soun and I saw to it that

the Master was...comfortably retired."

"Did you now?" Lotion smirked idly, "And I was under the impression that he was

immortal. In point of fact, I would have sworn that I have felt his faint

presence now and again, which I doubt would be the case if he were merely a

departed spirit."

"Uh...you never call tell with those ancestors of his," Genma shrugged,

"Um...ours, I mean. It's been ten long years since we have heard the cackle of

his merry laugh as he skipped boldly about raiding the private things of

unsuspecting women."

"I wouldn't count him dead if I were you," Lotion cautioned, "He's like a

Cockroach, you know, and since he is also a Lore Master, perhaps the greatest

yet living, I think Happosai..."

"No!" Genma almost leaped out of his chair, "Don't say his name! He might hear

and answer you! It's better to leave him where we buried...ah, I mean...to

leave the past buried. No sense awakening him from his sleep to haunt us once

again in the land of the living."

"Hmmm," the old woman remarked, "Point well taken. Very well then, let us

instead speak of the curious youth that accompanied you into our village."

"Nabiki?" Genma gasped before he had time to think twice about it.

"Yes," the old woman's eyes narrowed, "Nabiki...Tendo, was it not? Soun's child

is training with you? How odd...I could have sworn that I once predicted that

he would bear only girl children. Did Kimiko get lucky with a son as she so

desired?"

"Ah..." Genma fidgeted nervously, only to be interrupted by the approach of the

guide, who called out from the door to the house, "Oh sir! Come quickly! Your

niece is being tested by the villagers! Very serious this is, if she fail test

then she face worse penalty than if she lose on challenge log!"

"She?" Lotion arched eyebrows, "Niece?"

The guide took one look at the Elder and said, "Oh no...I blew it...so sorry..."

"Ah...coming right away," Genma got to his feet with great alacrity, but before

he could move more than three paces he heard the old woman speak again.

"Wait."

Genma froze in his place as if turned to stone, then slowly turned his eyes her

way, sweating profusely as he saw the strange intensity of her expression.

"I sense that the youth is in no immediate danger," Lotion said with deceptive

calm, "He will brave his test and succeed at every challenge. It is this other

matter that concerns me more, and you will enlighten me on it, the both of you.

Tell me truthfully the real identity of this...Tendo Nabiki..."

Both Genma and the guide swallowed thickly, an effect that was all too common

when in the presence of Lotion, the Lore Master of the Joketsuzoku.

"Ah...all right," Genma began as he sat down once again, "It all started almost

exactly ten years ago when Soun and I made a little agreement, all part of the

plan to eventually unite our families..."

Plum heard a rustling of wings and looked to the door of her family hut, then

got up out of her chair and went to investigate, finding the vulture perched

outside with no great surprise in her expression.

"Honored customer," she said politely, "You have been practicing using your new

body, I see. You wish to retrieve your things? Then come inside and let me

give you some hot water."

The vulture made a surprising show of bowing to the daughter of the Jusenkyo

tour guide, displaying unusual politeness for a creature of wing and feather,

let alone a carrion eater. It followed Plum into the hut without hesitation or

fear and waited until the girl retrieved the kettle that had been kept warm

close to the open pit-fire.

A moment later a moderately tall girl with long red hair done up in a long braid

shook her naked body dry, then accepted the articles of clothing that the girl

offered to her without comment. Dressing swiftly, the redhead smiled in

gratitude and said, "Dozo Arigato, Plum-san. Your hospitality and graciousness

bring honor to your house and father. I thank you again for taking care of my

belongings while I was...practicing my flying."

"It was no trouble, honorable customer," Plum said with equal politeness, "All

who fall into the cursed springs need time to adjust to the bodies they are

cursed with. Yours has certain advantages, true, but I can fully understand the

difficulties you will have finding hot water in the future. Wings are not

designed to pick up teakettles, I'm afraid..."

"You are correct in that," the redhead smiled a bit awkwardly, "It's just

something else I've got to get used to. Thanks all the same, now I'd better be

going, I found the party I was after and I don't want to miss them."

"Your friends who came here before you?" Plum asked, "If you saw the direction

that they were heading in, then perhaps I can tell you something about the area.

I've grown up in this province and I'm familiar with all the local villages..."

"Then tell me about this village I saw over in...that direction," Keiko pointed

after taking a moment to check her bearings, "It's about thirty kilometers or so

and is at the base of this really high mountain..."

Plum's eyes widened, "You mean village of the Nyanichiczu? Oh, dear...that is a

very dangerous place for them to be heading, valued customer. Is tribe of Woman

Warriors, very powerful fighters. If my father is taking them in that direction

they had better be careful not to pick any fights with villagers."

"Why?" Keiko asked, "Are they that good?"

"Oh yes," Plum replied, "But it's very dangerous even if you win. If an

outsider female defeats an Amazon, that warrior is honor bound to give them Kiss

of Death, which is pledge to hunt down and kill outsider female. If outsider

male defeat Amazon, however, then warrior give Kiss of Life, which is pledge to

marry..."

"Marry?" the redhead reacted, "As in say 'I do' with honeymoons and everything?"

"Yes," Plum nodded, "My mother came from village of Joketsuzoku many year ago.

After father defeat her in honorable combat she marry him to have me. I half

Amazon, I know about laws and if outsider defeat me some day I marry them, or so

say elders."

For a moment the redhead had a very disquieted expression, and then she snatched

up her pack of belongings and said, "I've gotta catch up with Nabiki fast! With

her luck, and knowing her like I do, if somebody doesn't warn her in time..."

"Father should tell them before anything bad happen," Plum said somewhat

uncertainly, then paused to add, "I think."

"We, no offense to you, kid," the redhead replied as she headed for the door,

"But your father hasn't done that good so far in warning them about what using

the springs could lead to. It's about a day's march on foot so I'd better hurry

if I want to catch up with them. Thanks for everything again, you've been a big

help, so here's a little extra tip to make up for the hot water."

"Oh," Plum looked shocked as Keiko headed out the door, having slapped a set of

coins in her hand that was more than expected, "But this too much...!"

"Believe me, you've earned it, and I've got more where that came from," replied

Arigami Keiko as she headed down the trail setting off for the village of

Joketsuzoku...

"Xian Pu?" Nabiki called out, looking around for her missing companion when-of

a sudden-her path was blocked by a blonde Amazon in somewhat revealing attire

that did not look to be standard Amazon issue.

"Why would you want a little girl like Xian Pu, outsider?" the blonde asked in

a sultry voice while striking a pose both alluring and seductive, "When you can

have a real woman like me?"

Nabiki looked the girl up and down, seeing an impressive amount of flesh and

suffering a quite obvious reaction that was entirely male in nature. He firmed

his jaw nonetheless and said, "I'm sorry, maybe another time, but I seem to

have misplaced my companion."

"That may be," the blonde replied as she put her arms around Nabiki's neck and

tried to draw him closer to her, "But I'm sure that I can make you a much more

tempting offer."

So saying the girl began to rub herself bodily up and down Nabiki, trying to

angle her face up in an attempt to kiss him, but Nabiki was having no part of it

just then. In spite of feeling an obvious attraction to the girl-one that

confused him as his male reactions were an entirely new experience-he

nonetheless did not like to be held this way, especially by someone seeking to

take advantage of his present condition.

"I'm sorry," Nabiki apologized, then reached out to press the tips of his

fingers along the base of the girl's neck, causing her to freeze up with a

surprised expression while Nabiki slipped out of her now-nerveless arms before

hitting a second nerve in passing that restored feeling to the blonde girl's

muscles.

While that girl started to regather herself Nabiki was surprised to hear someone

call out the Chinese word for "Fidelity." Wondering what that party was going

on about, he moved through the crowd looking for some sign of either the purple

haired girl or his wayward "Uncle Panda." The Amazons cleared a space as Nabiki

stumbled down one road feeling dizzy and confused now that the effects of

sobriety were at last wearing off. He was annoyed at not being able to think

too coherently and blamed it on the drink, but he had a sense that moving

forward was a better idea than standing around in one place.

It was almost like an accident that he nearly stumbled upon a small child who

was weeping by the side of the road. She appeared to have fallen and scraped

one knee, her torn clothing giving testament to the accident with marks of blood

showing. Nabiki balanced on her heels for a moment before bending down and

orienting upon the child Nabiki asked, "Are you all right, little girl? Do you

need any help?"

"Go away," the child replied, "I'm an Amazon, we don't cry! I'm brave, I can

take this..."

Nabiki squatted down and said, "I can see that, and you must be pretty brave,

getting banged up like that. I once had a pair of roller skate and fell off

them...I cried for ten whole minutes!"

The child looked up at her in surprise, "Really?"

"Uh huh," Nabiki said, "And then my big sister came and took me home where my

mother scolded me for being careless, then put medicine on my hurts to keep them

from being infected. I cried about that even more than the hurt over

falling...that medicine stung me pretty bad. I sure wasn't as brave about it as

you are."

The child blinked at her before saying, "But didn't people tease and make fun

of you about crying? They must have thought you were pretty weak..."

"Let them make fun of me," Nabiki scoffed, "Anything who wants to think that

about me is welcome to it, it means they'll underestimate me when it really

counts for something. Don't let people push you around, kid, stand up for

yourself, have a good cry and when it's over you'll feel a whole lot better."

The child looked intrigued, but then her expression grew condescending and she

said, "What do you know? You're only a male!"

Nabiki gave a short, bitter laugh at that and said, "Don't judge by

appearances, kid, you'll be surprised at what you miss. Now, if we're done

trying to impress each other with how brave we are, why don't you tell me where

you live and I'll walk you home."

"I don't need to be walked home," the kid said defensively, "I'm big enough, I

can look after myself..."

"Sure you can," Nabiki replied, "But if you want the honest truth, I'm the

one who could use a little assistance. I don't know my way around here all that

good, and I was hoping maybe you could show me the place where Xian Pu is

staying. She invited me to sleep over and eat at her house, but I seem to have

lost her."

"Oh, I know where Xian Pu lives," the child said enthusiastically, "It's not

so far from where I live..."

"Good," Nabiki decided, "So if you show me where she lives then you'll be that

much closer to home, and you'll be helping me, won't that be nice?"

"Ah," the child said reluctantly, then began rubbing her knee, "I don't think

I can walk so good..."

"No problem," Nabiki said, "I can carry you, or-if you like-you can ride on

my back until we're there. I promise that I won't bite."

The child was willing, so very soon Nabiki was giving a piggy-back ride to the

child, following her directions as she said which way to turn at which corner,

how far to go and so on. As he walked his mind began to clear a little as he

started to think more normally, wondering why he was doing what he was doing. A

sucker play like this would normally have earned his suspicion. His instincts

warned him that the child was not so badly hurt as he had suspected at first

glance, so why was the child pretending to be lame? There was only one reason

that Nabiki could think of and it made him tense slightly as he fought the

desire to pat his money belt, which was disguised as an ordinary sash but

contained a large number of folded bills and some gold coins as spending money,

a mere fraction of what he carried in his back pack in a hidden pouch.

There had been a time in India when a street urchin had attempted to rob

him...or rather her at the time, an attempt that Nabiki had easily thwarted,

only to become concerned with the emaciated condition of the youth, so she

insisted on taking him back to his home where she found conditions of poverty so

appalling that it had even touched her mercenary soul. She wound up leaving

there having given the child's family far more cash than he could have stolen if

he had succeeded in his effort. It was her earnings from a Street Fight, and

nothing she would seriously miss as she had better prospects lined up during her

search for the legendary Haddo master, Dhalsim. Turned out the boy had

information that was beneficial to her quest concerning a pair of youths who had

come that way a couple years before, so Nabiki wound up with the key she needed

to complete that particular quest, which to her made for a good transaction.

She liked her business transactions to be well rounded and it was rare that they

could leave her with such a sense of satisfaction.

This was a very different situation here, but the child did not make any

suspicious moves until they had arrived at the goal, at which point the child

abandoned her pretense and leaped off of Nabiki's back, laughing as a matronly

woman stepped forward to gather the child up into her arms, favoring Nabiki with

a most approving expression.

"Charity," someone from the crowd called out, causing Nabiki to turn around

and wonder if he were being insulted. To his surprise he instead found Xian Pu

standing before him smiling like the sun, no longer wearing the outfit she had

worn for the tournament but instead having donned a cream colored silk outfit

that had a slit along the side, revealing a lot of leg while concealing her

generous cleavage. She had done something with her hair that made her seem more

Princess like and ethereal, like a character from an ancient Chinese play, an

effect that only added to her already considerable beauty and impacted on

Nabiki's battered defenses like a fifteen pound sledgehammer. Nabiki gulped,

looking the girl up and down and thinking to herself that she had never seen a

more beautiful vision, exempting only the fading memories of her late mother.

"Do you like, Ailen?" she asked, to which Nabiki could offer no words in

reply. He was no longer feeling the effects of the alcohol but his head was

swimming at this vision of purple hair set off against pale silk, the effect of

which was altogether enchanting.

Apparently Nabiki's expression gave all the response Xian Pu needed as the

Chinese girl moved in to embrace him, tilting her head up while guiding his head

towards her mouth, at which point Nabiki might have done something to protest

but for the lingering confusion to his senses as his male body reacted to the

nearness of this girl in a way that was both shocking and unexpected.

"Love!" someone in the crowd pronounced as Xian Pu broke their kiss, then

looked down in surprise at the level of her belly. The Amazon saw the tell tale

bulge and for a moment looked stunned, then turned a smile Nabiki's way that was

like the sun and the moon coming out from behind a fog bank.

For his part Nabiki was equal parts stunned and dismayed at the effect that kiss

had worked upon his senses. It was not the first passionate kiss that he had

ever received from another woman but there was something very different this

time from the burning kisses he had received in Hong Kong. This kiss had fire

but it was gentle and inviting, strong in the way that bamboo leaves were strong

and promising more in the way of all mysteries yet to be revealed and there for

the taking. The kiss left Nabiki spinning like a compass needle without focus,

amazed at the way his male body was reacting to that kiss and the sudden,

inexplicable passions it awoke in him. When Nabiki looked into Xian Pu's eyes he

saw mirrored depths reflecting back his own strange sense of wonder.

What was going on here, a loud but insistent part of his mind was demanding, why

was this girl affecting him this way, and what was with that thing between his

legs? It was like it had a mind of its own! Down girl, he thought to himself

in a desperate attempt at reasserting some control over the situation. Looking

into those eyes, however, made him lose focus, and for the first time in his

young life Tendo Nabiki was bereft of all sense of direction, yet somehow giddy

with the unexpected possibilities created by this bizarre situation.

When someone pressed another drink into his hand Nabiki took it without

hesitation. A long pull on the draft helped to ease her mind once again and

drown out the voice of his conscience. Looking into the eyes of the girl was

like another kind of strong beverage for her smile was infectious. When she

gently guided him towards a small shrine that they had somehow come to stand

before Nabiki paid very little attention, thinking that he was being asked to

bless the spirits of the place as he would any of a thousand shrines back home

in Japan. He hardly even noticed when the strange old woman began murmuring

words in his direction, his mind clouded by very different spirits than the kind

that you worshipped in the temples...

"I see," Lotion concluded as she hobbled along on her staff, "So you came here

hoping to find a cure for your Jusenkyo curses because this fool here said that

we might know something about their nature?"

The Jusenkyo guide said nothing but merely slumped along like a small boy being

chided by a stern schoolmarm. It was significant that he had said nothing since

leaving the Elder's home but at the moment Genma was only paying attention to

the old woman.

"That's more or less it, Elder," Genma remarked, "I really had no idea that

there would be a contest going on, or that my niece would be foolish enough to

compete without knowing all of the rules. She really can be impulsive sometimes

and more than a bit headstrong..."

"I wonder who she learned that from," Lotion said in an idle voice, then more

soberly she added, "And to think that, of all the people in this village, the

one your niece had to go and challenge turns out to be Comb's daughter."

"I should have known," Genma groaned, "The resemblance was too uncanny, but it's

been over twenty years since I saw Comb and your granddaughter...I didn't even

know she had a daughter..."

"What did you think she has been doing since she parted company with you?"

Lotion sniffed, "Pining away forlorn over what might have been?"

"Oh no," Genma laughed nervously, "I never thought she would do that. I'm very

happy for her, and her husband must be a very lucky man. It's just...will

Nabiki be in serious trouble over this?"

"Serious trouble?" Lotion said in plain disbelief, "Didn't Comb ever tell you

what the consequences would be if she lost in a fight with you? The Gods are my

witness, she's mentioned it to me often enough, it must count as one of her

worst nightmares."

"That bad, huh?" Genma noted quietly as they rounded the corner and came upon a

gathering of sorts that was centered around a shrine, "Is this another one of

your local customs?"

Lotion stared in dismay at what she knew with all her instincts to be a

potential disaster in the making and said, "More than that, it's a wedding

ceremony."

"A what?" Genma reacted with dismay.

"Oh sir!" the Guide suddenly spoke up, "This very bad! Your niece she defeat

Amazon woman, so she marry as boy to Amazon she defeat! How very tragic."

"We have to put a stop to this!" Genma cried, lurching forward, only to trip and

land on his face as Lotion's staff got in the way of his forward progress.

"You will do nothing, do you understand me?" Lotion hissed, "This situation is

more volatile than you could imagine! If you act typically, without thinking,

you could destroy any chance at future happiness that either you or your niece

could ever hope to embrace."

"But...you don't understand!" Genma protested from ground level, "I have to look

out for the girl or her father will kill me! I promised my own wife I would

protect her or commit seppuku is I failed..."

"How very Japanese of you," Lotion replied, "But if you sincerely value her

welfare as dear as your own you will listen carefully to what I tell you and

obey me to the letter. From what you have said so far I judge that your niece

is not fully aware of the circumstances that she has become involved in, and for

now we must allow her to proceed as if nothing were amiss."

"And what do you have in mind, honored Grandmother?" the Guide asked nervously.

"I'll tell you as soon as I know myself, son-in-law," Elder Lotion replied, "For

now we play this thing by ear, and let me do all the talking..."

It seemed to Xian Pu as if her entire life had been designed only for the

purpose of bringing her to this moment when everything became clear and

meaningful. She had a husband, and the Elder was reciting an ancient phrase of

benediction, the really short kind that basically acknowledged the reality of

the marriage so that the gods themselves would have no objections. She then

asked a pro-forma line of her slightly inebriated husband, "Have you any

objections to accepting Xian Pu as your woman, boy?"

"Hah?" Nabiki asked without translating the words properly, her mind now too

befuddled to make the effort of unscrambling the Chinese, so he waved his goblet

and said, "Sure...whatever you say."

"Good," the Elder said with clarity, "Then by the authority invested in me by

those idiots in Beijing I pronounce you two married. Now hand him the documents

to sign so we can do this official."

"Hold!" spoke Lotion as she approached the gathering with Genma and the Guide

following her wake, "That boy is not yet properly of age to sign those papers

for himself. This man is the boy's legal, guardian, let him sign in his place,

the boy will simply initialize the document with a thumb print."

"Whatever," the other Elder reply, "You're not going to contest the

legitimacy of the marriage itself, are you?"

"Why no," Lotion replied, "I think they make a very fine couple, but the boy

is clearly too drunk to think rationally for himself so it's better we not put

too much pressure on him for the moment. Let Xian Pu take him to her home and

the two can become better acquainted. I've quizzed her Guardian and have

determined that the boy is of sound character and will make a very fine

husband."

"What does all that mean?" Genma murmured to the guide.

"She say girl now married," the Guide responded, "She go home with other girl

and wait for her to sober."

"Married?" Genma almost went into a panic, "I have to put a stop to

this...OOFF!"

"You want us both be killed?" the Guide hissed back after jabbing him with a

rib, "You no interfere in important Amazon ritual or they show you what they do

to men to make them sing better soprano."

"Uh..." Genma's face was contrite as he thought that one over, then he said, "On

second thought, maybe it is better if we let my Niece make a new friend, even if

it's only for the sake of good relations with the locals."

Xian Pu followed none of these exchanges, all of her attention was focused on

the strong young man before her, the man who was now hers to claim for her

husband. Xian Pu felt incredibly fortunate and blessed by the gods, the more so

since the other warriors of her peerage were making lewd comments and wry

suggestions that informed her of their jealousy over her success. Her new

husband looked somewhat befuddled due to the drink he had consumed, but when he

looked towards Shampoo there was no mistaking the interest in his eyes, the fact

that he seemed to find her more than appealing as a wife, everything that she

could hope for, including a bulge in his trousers that more than amply testified

to his interest.

When they passed the document along Xian Pu had no hesitation about placing her

thumb-print on the text, while her husband needed some assistance to get his

thumb into place, and then the Elder said that they were married. Xian Pu

wasted no time wrapping her arms around her husband and giving him a kiss that

spoke of her passion and desire in a way that no man would find difficult to

interpret. He seemed surprised at her gesture and flailed out before putting

his own strong arms around her for support while the kiss went on and on in all

the sweetness that Xian Pu had ever imagined. When she broke the kiss her

husband looked dazed, though that could also have been caused by the drink,

which appeared to have robbed him of his coherent power of speech. All he

seemed able to say was in that guttural tongue called Japanese, which Xian Pu

had only learned a little of in her youth from her mother.

It did not matter if he was unable to say the words to her...he did not have to

say much at this point anyway, and what his body told her was more than

adequate. Xian Pu took her husband by the hand and guided him to her

house...the one she shared with her Great Grandmother, rather than the house

that belonged to her mother and father. It was his house as well, she realized,

feeling a giddiness bubble up from inside as she thoughts on the next phase of

the ritual brought an excitement that was all but irresistible and not to be

denied as with any other calling of nature...

Nabiki allowed himself to be led by the girl's hand, his mind still befuddled by

drink and the passionate kiss the girl had given him, not to mention the

surprising sensations of his body, all of which combined overwhelmed his normal

reserves and left him in a state of total compliance. He wasn't sure what

exactly was going on but the girl seemed awfully insistent that he come away

with her and Nabiki was far from in a condition to refuse her.

Nabiki had to admit to a certain fascination with the strange girl with purple

hair...by any reasonable standard she was a tempting enough package with an

exotic quality that more than held his interest. Even in female form she would

have found this Xian Pu an amazing enough girl with her energy and vibrancy that

shown in her every healthy pore, the sparkle in her reddish-brown eyes, the very

strength by which she held Nabiki's hand as she drew him along to her place, all

of which combined penetrated the hazy fog around Nabiki's brain and added up to

the one thing that even a blind man could see coming.

The girl wanted him for more than just a houseguest, that much was plainly

evident, and she was in no mood to take no for an answer. She had no idea who

Nabiki truly was, nor did she even suspect that Nabiki was as much a stranger to

the ways of men as she suspected this girl of being. For a brief instant he

considered telling her, then nixed that idea as a tactically unsound maneuver.

No sense freaking out the first friendly face that he had seen in such a very

long while and the last thing he wanted to do was alienate his prospective

hostess. Besides, it wasn't as if he could exactly blame the girl for making a

mistaken assumption, but how to mollify her without giving an unintentional

insult...and did Nabiki really want to refuse her attentions? After all the

girl was more than slightly attractive...

Nabiki had to swallow past the thickness of his vocal chords as faint memory

washed through the haze and made him conscious of the fact that he was actually

considering doing it with a total stranger. SHE had not been with another girl

since her first time with Arigami Keiko just less than a year before the

present, her first and only time as a matter of course since Nabiki had refused

the advances of countless men seeking her attentions in the course of her

training. There were times, of course, when Nabiki had been tempted along the

way, but always the need to move on, to find Jusenkyo-which her Uncle had

claimed was a legendary training ground for warriors-had caused her to pass up

such opportunities...and now look what had become of her! Jusenkyo had almost

proven her undoing, a nightmare made reality that had left Nabiki to wonder if

she would ever again have a marriageable prospect.

Nabiki remembered that moment when Genma in panda form had knocked her into the

curses spring of Nannichuan...the horrifying sense of drowning in the water

after having survived many a swim, including a perilous escape by sea. It was

as if the pool were draining away a part of herself, only to replace it with

something different, and the weird sense that her Ki had been fundamentally

altered. When Nabiki broke the surface again relief had flooded her being as

the sun poking through the hazy clouds with a promise that her life was far from

ended...and then realization hit her squarely between the eyes and she had

looked down to find a flat, muscular chest, while there was an unexpected bulge

in her trousers...

That was the moment when the Guide's words finally penetrated to her:

Nannichuan, the spring of the Drowned Man. She had been cursed by magic to turn

into a guy whenever doused with cold water. It was the last coherent thought

Nabiki had for the next hour as the first thing she did upon leaving the spring

was to chase after her transformed Uncle with the full intent of beating him

senseless.

In all her travels Nabiki had always managed somehow to keep foremost in mind

the fact that she was a lady. It was a promise to her mother and older sister

that she would never allow herself to lose all trace of femininity, and now that

promise was effectively broken. Sometime after Nabiki had managed to calm down

she had studied her masculine profile in a pocket mirror she was carrying and

looked upon a stranger with her eyes who had a coarser look about him but was

unmistakably handsome, and for some reason her heart had skipped a moment with

self-desire.

She had mastered that impulse and did not look into another mirror for the

remainder of the day. Instead she had demanded that the Guide tell her of a

means for removing the curse, and he had muttered something past the choking of

his collar about a village nearby that had elders and Lore Masters who could

assist her more than he could.

That was when Nabiki decided to let him live and resolved to seek out the

counsel of these Lore Masters to see what they knew about these Jusenkyo curses.

Of course the entire focus of her attention had become somewhat befuddled once

she had arrived here, but Nabiki was sure that there would be adequate time to

obtain the answers she was seeking...provided she could think of some way of

dissuading the purple haired girl from undressing her...him...or...wait. Wasn't

she already doing that?

Nabiki looked down, finding his shirt had already been removed by the girl

standing directly before him. Nabiki had been so caught up in his memories that

he had not been aware of actually entering the girls house, or of her starting

to undress him until it was already halfway accomplished. The girl removed his

money sash and tossed it on the floor, then was about to undo the chord binding

Nabiki's trousers when he gently moved to prevent her.

"I'm sorry," Nabiki murmured in Japanese, not aware that the girl did not

understand what he was saying, "I didn't mean to let things get this far...I..."

"Wo ai ni," the girl smiled, eyes half-lidded as if she were interpreting his

hesitation for reluctance.

"Ah..." Nabiki tried again to get his mind back in focus but found it impossible

to think rationally at all in the light of the purple haired girl's strange

ardor. His mind fogged up again as her lips pressed against him, Xian Pu

standing on tip-toes to reach his mouth for a kiss that took away all of his

remaining objections.

Nabiki did not notice as Xian Pu's fingers undid the knot in the chord, then

tugged down on his trousers. She was a little surprised to find what Nabiki was

wearing under them, but dismissed all thoughts of perversity on the part of her

husband. Instead she freed the bulge that had been struggling for release and

was rewarded by the feeling of a stiffening shaft rising up to full attention.

When her hand closed on that shaft Nabiki gasped in both surprise and relief,

too befuddled to be alarmed at the sudden loss of his control over the

situation. The girl's smooth calluses and strong fingers combined to create

sensations that were totally beyond Nabiki's limited experience with his new

male anatomy. He was powerless to do nought but surrender in the face of the

inevitable while Xian Pu smiled with glorious anticipation.

How did her mother express such things that one time that they had shared a talk

on the subject of men and women? Xian Pu's only real experience with her own

sexuality had been at the hands of Lo Xion the Younger, her long-lost friend and

female lover from two seasons back. She knew what to do if she were like this

with another woman, but how did a man expect to be pleasured? The mechanics

were somewhat different, but her mother had insisted on one thing that had never

failed to gain the interest of her father.

Xian Pu's smile intensified as she gave a sultry look towards her husband, then

gently slid down to the floor so that her knees touched the ground. Nabiki just

stared down at her in confusion that turned quickly to amazement as Xian Pu

wrapped both hands around the shaft the brought her lips up towards the bulging

knob and gave it a brief, tentative lick, then smiled again and brought her

whole mouth into play, taking him in a few inches before withdrawing with

another lick across the foreskin.

Nabiki staggered back and caught his balance against the wall that met his broad

shoulders. What was the girl doing to her now? Could it be? But-that was

impossible...

And then he softly groaned and ceased all protest, suddenly immersed in waves of

pleasure that emanated from the contact point of the girl's tongue. His bulge

turned rock hard as he held on for dear life and allowed the girl to conduct her

business with unrelenting devotion...

"Of course you know you have made a thorough mess out of everything," Lotion

scolded the befuddled Genma as they watched Nabiki being led off by his purple

haired bride.

"Me?" Genma reacted, "Why didn't you stop this before..."

"Hush!" Lotion glared at him, "If you say another word I'll freeze your vocal

chords. Save your questions until we are in private...too many here may know

your barbarous language."

Genma meekly complied while the guide's shoulders slumped as he muttered, "She

going to be very angry when she find out truth, Grandmother."

"Which one?" Lotion asked, then hobbled back towards her hut with the two men

compliantly following in her wake. It was not until after the flap had closed

over the entrance that she turned to them and said, "There was no choice but to

do as I acted. Your niece is now married to Xian Pu and there is nothing that I

can do to negate that."

"But..." Genma started to protest.

"I know," Lotion waved the point dismissively, "Your niece has not a clue as to

what has just happened...the Brew of Truth has seen to that. It's just as well

since her fate was decided the moment that she defeated Xian Pu as a man, though

I wish by all the gods that I had gotten there in time to prevent that. Now we

have a complicated mess that takes no skill on my part to foresee as leading to

disaster."

"What can we do, honored Grandmother?" the Guide inquired.

"First off it is paramount that no one be allowed to suspect the truth about her

real gender," the old woman said in a deadly whisper, then more loudly she said,

"And second, act like you have some backbone to you, fool. You want people to

guess that you're hiding something from them? Straighten up and don't slouch.

You're a martial artist after all, and you need to look proud that the boy you

trained has conquered the heart of an Amazon princess."

"I'll try," Genma said, fighting his own growing depression by squaring his

shoulders and looking straight ahead for a moment, then his shoulders slumped

again and he allowed his dread to be revealed in his expression, "I'm doomed!

Nabiki will kill me for allowing this to happen to her. Soun will break my

bones then kill me, and as for Nodoka..." he shuddered and did not complete the

sentence.

"Other than that I take it you have no objections to the marriage?" Lotion

inquired, then in more serious tones she added, "Never mind, the point is that a

marriage once made cannot be dissolved under Amazon law. If you attempted to

interfere it would cause a scandal and likely end in some unpleasantness for

both you and your adopted niece. The situation here is more critical than you

can imagine, not least for which is the fact that it is the ruling house of our

Matriarch that will be dishonored if anyone discovers the truth of her

condition."

"What Elder Cologne do when she find out?" the guide asked, then shuddered

before adding, "Never mind, honored Grandmother, I no want to know what happen."

"Especially since some of the blame will fall upon you for not warning these two

in advance," Lotion said with a thoughtful expression, "It is fortunate that the

Matriarch herself is not present to arbitrate or I would be compelled to tell

her the truth, and she most likely would take action to secure her great

granddaughter's position. At the very least she would attempt to lock the girl

in her male form until she could find a way of gaining the support of the

council for this union, and since it was Elder Be Dea who performed the actual

ceremony of acknowledgement it might even be possible to convince her to go in

on the agreement. Unfortunately Be Dea and Cologne are bitter rivals going back

at least four generations and so that Elder might see an opportunity to

embarrass the Matriarch's house in an attempt to curb at least some of her

power. I have no great love for Cologne myself, but Shampoo is innocent of the

bad blood between the houses and should not be drawn into this. Therefore I

believe it would be best not to count on Be Dea in these matters. That just

leaves us with the question of your niece herself and how she would take to the

news that she is married to an Amazon. Any observations or comments you might

offer there, Saotome-san?"

"Um..." Genma thought about it, read the resolve in the old woman's eyes and

decided for once that the truth might be more prudent, "She has...shown an

inclination towards other girls in the past, but..."

"But marriage was never foremost in her thoughts?" Lotion concluded for him, "So

how will she react to discovering that she is a married woman? Not well, I take

it?"

"No," Genma said reluctantly, "I think she'd try to find a way out of it. My

niece doesn't like being forced to do things that weren't of her deliberate

intention..."

"Which means that she would come up against our Matriarch," Lotion concluded,

"And she would lose, but with the result that Shampoo will be humiliated and her

family will be disgraced before the eyes of the ruling Council. That will not

sit well with anyone, except perhaps Be Dea and other rivals who would seek to

usurp Cologne's position. As I said I am not a big fan of the Matriarch, but

instability that comes with a transition of power is not a very good thing at

this particular point in our history, so I would act to shore up her position

rather than see it come to this. That presents me with the problem of what I

must do as Lore Master of this village, bound by oath to support our

traditions."

"If girl stay there be trouble, Grandmother," the Guide observed, "If she leave

she dishonor Amazon bride."

"And if Cologne were deciding this she would never leave our village, either as

female or alive," Lotion turned to regard Genma with a somber expression, "The

daughter of Tsukino Kimiko has a destiny to fulfill...that much I know without

even needing to refer to the sight. If she remains with us beyond the morning

she will be forced to accept the status of a male of our village, either that or

have the option of replacing Shampoo as our champion, neither fate of which I am

sure she will take to kindly. Therefore there is one option alone that holds

some slight hope of working to the betterment of all concerned parties."

"And that is?" Genma asked breathlessly.

"Tell me, Saotome-san," the old woman asked with a twinkle in her eyes, "When

you were studying with the old pervert did he teach you his special technique

for dealing with situations where one is overwhelmed and faced with perilous

odds arrayed against you?"

Genma's eyes widened, "You mean...?"

"Run away," Lotion replied, "Take your niece and flee our village come first

light, or if you stay you will be trapped here forever. You would not much

enjoy our hospitality as you most likely would be locked into your cursed form

to serve as a pet for entertaining our children, which is a better fate in a way

than to be reduced to slave status and be forced to toil in our fields like a

common laborer. Then, of course, there is Comb to be considered and what she is

likely to do to you once she discovers what you allowed to have happen to her

daughter."

"Comb?" Genma blanched, "You're right, of course. I'll go find Nabiki and tell

her we're leaving..."

"Not yet," Lotion's staff rapped against the man's barrel chest for emphasis,

"Let them enjoy one night of bliss together...it is likely to be the only peace

that either of them will know for a very long time to come. Shampoo deserves

one night with her husband if she is to endure the trials that lay in store for

both her and Nabiki. After they have rested you can awake the girl and tell her

as much of the truth as you think you can survive her knowing. Make something

up if you have to...I well remember what a cunning liar you could be in the old

days. Just make sure she believes it, and for the love of all your ancestors

and mine, do not wake the village when you leave here! I will speak with

Shampoo and see that she does not immediately follow."

"But...honored Grandmother," the Guide remarked, "Won't girl be disgraced in

eyes of all village?"

"Not as much as if they knew the full story," Lotion replied, "To them Shampoo

will be a wronged woman and be entirely within her rights to hunt and punish her

husband for desertion. It will give us all the time we need to think of

something else that might more permanently resolve this situation. A little

dishonor is preferable to a great dishonor, and this way Shampoo's family can

survive the ensuing scandal. Of course the Matriarch will be forced to follow

after them in order to resolve a situation that so directly concerns the honor

of her house..."

"And that leave you here with other Council members to guide fate of village?"

the guide observed shrewdly.

The old woman smiled before saying, "I never said this...I never advised you do

to any such thing, Saotome-san. As far as anyone will know this will just be

another of your selfish, irresponsible stunts fleeing the village rather than

live up to an affair of honor. I know you will not see it that way, but just so

long as other Amazons believe it there is hope for us to come out of this affair

with everyone's honor intact, to say nothing of their lives and...other parts of

considerable value."

She glanced down at Genma's legs, then looked up to see if he got the point to

her statement, and she was gratified to see that he did from the way he was

swallowing and moving his lands to cover his privates. She turned her attention

back towards the guide and added, "And if word comes out that I spoke in any way

to cause this fool to leave us suddenly, I will be most disappointed in you,

Son-In-Law."

It was the Guide's turn to swallow before he said, "No worry, honored

Grandmother, I no tell anyone...what there to tell anyway? Who know why

foreigners do what they do? Is like visitor to Jusenkyo..." he shrugged and did

not look at Genma, though his meaning was clear enough and received a knowing

smirk from the old woman...

Nabiki gasped in amazement at the way his new body reacted to the attention it

was receiving down below. Unconsciously his legs bowed and his knees became

watery as he arched his head backwards and groaned with unexpected pleasure. It

had been long...so very long since he had felt anything comparable. It made her

suddenly very much aware that he was alive and said a lot about the

possibilities of having a male body when being intimate with another woman.

Xian Pu was heartily pleased at hearing her husband's approval, but she knew she

had to be careful not to rush things too fast or she would suffer the

disappointment of a premature discharge. Her mother had warned her that making

love to a man was very different from making love to another woman, so her

experiences with her beloved Lo Xion were of limited value here. All she had

effectively achieved was to earn her husband's interest. Time now to stimulate

him in a different way to insure that he relished the moment as much as she was

in finding his special centers of arousal.

So it was that she desisted in the oral part of her examination of his male

organ and instead withdrew to give him a dazzling smile as he looked down at her

in evident confusion. She made certain that she captured his eyes with her own

before she reached up to undo the buttons on her collar, and then one by one she

unhooked the wooden pegs to reveal more and more of her cleavage until her

breasts were partially revealed, and then she saw her husband glance down with

irresistible compulsion, drawn as if by a magnet by Xian Pu's feminine qualities

which were now his to possess. It was with no surprise at all that the Amazon

noted his manhood grew even more wooden until it was as stiff as a tree trunk.

Nabiki could not believe what he saw hinted at from the gap in the Amazon girl's

shirt. The gaping canyon formed by two round melons seemed to defy credulity as

Nabiki tried hard to understand how any woman could be such a great fighter yet

be so top heavy. His eyes grew even wider when Xian Pu leaned forward and took

his manhood into that gap, then pressed her breasts together and began to rub

them against it. Like a man having an unbelievable hallucination Nabiki stared

at the thing which had been his bane for the past day and two nights finding

safe harbor between the velvety smooth contact of bare skin and it threatened to

put him over the edge. Somehow the girl managed to hold him back from a full

explosion at this treatment but it was all he could do to grit his teeth against

the strain this was causing in his hips. The girl was keeping him dangerously

close to the edge of his first male climax and it was all Nabiki could do at

this point to hold on for the ride, being totally at her mercy.

Nabiki gazed into the glowing face of the girl who was pleasuring him and felt

his mind clear of one intoxicant while becoming very much aware of a kind that

was almost an addiction. This girl seemed to know the exact way to send him

into a state of bliss where all other worldly concerns faded to nothing, where

only Xian Pu had any real meaning, and it was tearing him up inside to realize

that he was, in effect, perpetrating a deception.

Nabiki had never meant for things to come this far. The drink had been only

partly responsible for him losing control and giving into the girl's not-very-

subtle urgings. In effect that it was his body itself had taken charge of this

affair while his brain went on brief hiatus, overwhelmed in the rush of hormones

for which he had no baseline experience and against which he had no defenses.

Hormones had governed his actions so far, along with a passive curiosity and

bemused state of interest in seeing whether or not he was even capable of

behaving like a man would. Having satisfied himself that he was very male in

this body, he was now in a position to appreciate the moment while so many other

young men seemed to lack all mastery over themselves in the presence of an

attractive young woman.

He had lost control over the situation, and by rights he should fight to get it

back, but once again he was held paralyzed by the adoration in Xian Pu's gaze.

The purple haired girl seemed to exert some kind of power over him that defied

reason and intelligence. No matter how Nabiki had arrived in this situation the

plain fact was that he had failed to deny the clear signals she had been sending

him, so he was equally at fault here and could not refuse her on the basis of

last-minute scruples. He had obviously captured her interest, so even if he

could tell her the truth it would be remarkably bad timing and might alienate

her against him.

So he resolved to endure her seductive treatment, helpless to do anything but

respond to her cues while he rode the crest of a tide of unexpected emotions

that rose up within his breast. Nabiki was flattered that she would consider

him worthy of her attention as there was not a doubt in his mind that she was

every inch a most desirable young woman.

But it wasn't right that he be passive throughout their whole encounter. He was

a guy now, and men were supposed to take the initiative with women. That was

something Nabiki had always believed in herself, that a man should come onto her

in a positive and assertive way that did not overwhelm or intimidate her, and

surely the same was true of this Chinese girl who seemed to intent on driving

him to distraction!

So he watched and waited for his opportunity when the girl rose up from her

knees to stand fully erect before him. She reached up to her shirt with the

clear intent of completing the gesture of removal but Nabiki stopped her,

deciding at this point that he would give her the sort of treatment that she was

giving him, and with considerable interest.

Xian Pu looked startled for a moment as she felt her husband's strong hands

brush against the silk fabric of her shirt, and then those hands took firm hold

of her collar and parted it from her shoulders. Xian Pu was startled at the

young man's boldness as he stripped away her only garment, revealing her upper

body in all its wondrous glory as Nabiki laid hands on Xian Pu's upper arms and

held her at easy arms length, his brown eyes shining with a tenderness that left

her feeling breathless.

His touch burned her skin and sent her pulse to quicken as Xian Pu felt herself

being critically examined by those eyes, which seemed to find much that was to

his approval. Then those arms drew her into an embrace as her breasts pressed

against his muscular chest and they held each other tightly. Xian Pu was amazed

at the feeling of strength within his beating chest, the hardness of his smooth

backside which was literally rippling with energy, the crushing power of his

embrace held in check by his gentleness and she rested her head against his bare

skin, almost weeping with delight at her good fortune. Even the strong musk

odor of his body was like heady perfume to her aroused senses, and for the first

time in her young life Xian Pu felt desire for a male that rivaled or surpassed

those emotions she had once only known with Lo Xion.

Nabiki, for his part, was equally amazed at the strength of the girl's body, the

firm muscles that lay beneath smooth skin with barely enough padding to qualify

as a buffer. Those slender arms that were holding him so tightly had the

consistency of silken bands wrapped around steel cables, and those large, firm

breasts that were poking against his chest were incredibly stiff with erection.

He smelled her hair and thought for certain that she was wearing a perfume made

of lilacs, an expensive brand that only heightened rather than canceled out her

natural scent, increasing the impression that here was a rare blossom from a

wild mountain meadow.

"Xian Pu," he murmured softly, closing his eyes as he held her close, seeking an

anchor for the inexplicable feelings that were tearing apart his certainty of

who he was and what direction his life would be taking. What an irony, what an

incredible cosmic joke to discover someone like her only a day after receiving a

curse that had taken away her womanly birthright.

Xian Pu heard her name being spoken and was amazed at the wave of emotions this

inspired within her. Was this strong man weeping for joy or calling out to her

from a need that emanated from the very center of his being? Either way she was

both touched and incredibly flattered, again thanking the Gods and her ancestors

for giving her such a man to end her loneliness and bring light back to her

existence.

In a way it was very strange that neither one of them felt too tired to continue

at that point. Given that Xian Pu had fought all day against her rivals, and

that the boy must have traveled a great distance on foot to have found their

village, coupled with the amount of her Great Grandmother's special brew that he

had consumed, should have rendered them incapable of going the full distance.

They could have collapsed together in an exhausted heap and slept until morning

and Xian Pu would not have been disappointed...by very much at any rate. It was

too much to expect her new husband to perform his marital duties, so she was

about to offer him the chance to rest when he surprised her again, tilting her

chin up and kissing her softly.

Nabiki was indeed tired, and now that the edge of the drink had worn off he

began to lose some of his residual energies from a long day of exertion with

very little food and rest, yet somehow he did not have any desire to quit at

this point. He had surrendered tacitly to the burning needs of his male form,

and he wanted nothing less than to possess this girl with purple hair, if only

for one night. He was beyond rational thought in the matter, operating on pure

instinct, guided by a memory of another time with a very different girl, but

also a moment so intense and blissful that it urged him on to continue his part

of the encounter.

How did Keiko come onto her that time when they were hiding out in the slums of

Hong Kong near the outskirts of the city? Nabiki's mind might be clouded but he

vividly recalled in detail the sweetness of being held in a passionate embrace,

the things Keiko had done to him-or rather her-that had burned into his memory

with sweet surrender. It galvanized him now to use those same techniques upon

the girl he was embracing. There was no thought of quitting at this point, so

Nabiki began to plant soft kisses to the girl's cheek and throat, moving down to

the level of those huge breasts that hung so tantalizingly before him, taking

his time moving around the right mound with slow, languorous use of tongue and

lips, giving the astonished Chinese girl the royal treatment.

Xian Pu gasped in disbelief as she leaned back and groaned at what her husband

was doing to her breast. The sensations were indescribable, and as she waited

with thin patience she felt her body come alive with pins and needles, right up

to the moment when that magic tongue flicked against the hard nub of Xian Pu's

right nipple.

She went weak in the knee and almost collapsed under this assault, only her

delight was intensified when Nabiki suckled her breast for a full, wondrous

minute before surrendering his hold and moving on to repeat the same technique

on her other nipple. Her husband was showing her great patience and superb

technique, almost as if performing a kind of sexual Kata that was driving her

past the point of distraction. When her husband finished with her left nipple

and began to paint loving kisses down her smooth tummy it was too much to be

endured. Xian Pu lost her balance and began to fall backwards, only to be eased

to the floor by the man's strong arms as Nabiki aimed to plant her firmly on

Xian Pu's own bedroll. He then wasted no time removing her pants to get at the

rest of her supple body.

Nabiki was amazed with himself as he started to devour his way down the smooth,

hard flesh that was as flat as a washboard with the hint of solid muscle

underneath. His desire only increased as he brought his lips down to the

velvety area around her groin, and while it was too dark to tell for certain

Nabiki sensed that the hairs were as purple here as on her head, which only

increased her exotic appeal as he teased around the soft pink area he sensed

unfolding, not going at it right away but taking his time to kiss around the

area, stroking up and down the sensitive nerves of the inner thighs while the

girl moaned on her mattress and groaned in an entirely pleasant manner. Those

legs were as strongly muscled as the rest of her body and urged Nabiki to

explore there as well, but the increasing pressure of his own loins demanded a

release of a very different kind, so Nabiki finally drove his tongue into the

pink folds of the girl's moistened labia and began to tease her as he sought out

her clitoris.

At this point Xian Pu's intense groans could be heard for miles in any

direction, causing villagers to turn with knowing smirks and jealous expressions

in the direction of the Matriarch's house. They had no doubt that the sounds

would continue for quite a while and no one would be so foolhardy as to

interrupt them. It was also nice to hear another bride finding fulfillment, and

with such a husband that many started laying bets on what hour the two would

finally succumb to exhaustion.

A sober part of Nabiki's mind might have been wondering this as well, but at the

moment he didn't care about anything but bringing the girl off into full orgasm.

He had no idea that the girl was experiencing a flashback to another time and a

different lover, the only other to claim possession of her heart, but when his

finger probed the insides of her inner vulva he encountered no hymen, easily

sliding up to locate her treasured G-spot.

By itself this did not mean that she had been deflowered by another man, he

realized. Unlike in her case, a hymen was easily broken in the course of

martial arts training, so there was no great surprise at finding Xian-Pu's

pleasure spot without interruption. Surely the girl appreciated his gesture

enough as she started writhing immediately, her groans taking on an entirely

different context.

He makes love just like Lo Xion! Xian Pu realized with incredulous delight. To

find a man who was so thoughtful and considerate as to put her own needs before

his own...what an incredible man he was, and how lucky to lose to such a

specimen! The gods had truly blessed Xian Put that the second great love of her

life would come to her this way and give her lonely heart the pleasure she had

always been seeking. Now at last she understood why her parents were always

acting so silly around each other!

Nabiki decided that he could wait no longer, yet the thought of what he was

about to do was enough to almost break the mood that had been carrying him so

far. He could see no way around it, though, and in all truth he wanted this as

much as the girl plainly did. It took him a few seconds to rally his courage,

and then he sat up and positioned his crotch so that the iron bar that hung

between his legs could finally be planted in the way that nature had designed

it.

Xian Pu sensed what her husband was about to do and stared down the length of

her naked body, past the shadows of gathering twilight, unable to say a word or

even breathe as she waited with anticipation. The moment the head of his cock

touched the mouth of her loins, however, there was no doubt or hesitation on

either part as Nabiki took a deep breath then slid into the girl with such ease

that he might as well have been sheathing a dagger. Xian Pu gasped very

slightly, not at all in discomfort, and then the two of them were joined in

body, entwined and enfolded into a physical sensation in which individuality was

banished. From that moment on they moved as two parts of one body, Nabiki

burying her male member all the way before withdrawing slightly, only to thrust

again with increasing vigor.

It was too much to sustain the moment forever, though, and when at last his

physical needs were peaked beyond recall Nabiki surrendered himself as he

ejaculated into the girl, filling her with his cream while Xian Pu leaned back

and leant out a scream of sheer delight that would awaken the gods themselves

and give her ancestors a smile to last down through the ages...

And in her village hut the Elder known as Lo Xion bowed her head and softly

said, "It is done. The seeds of the future have been sown in the present, and

what may finally come of this even the fates may not reveal to mere mortals."

"What is that, Grandmother?" the Jusenkyo guide asked from where he sat upon

his cot, eyeing the snoring Genma with barely concealed disdain.

"Oh, nothing," Lotion hobbled away from the window, "Nothing you need worry

about. Let the fool rest a few hours then wake him. You need rest as well, so

better cover your head with a pillow. I want you to take these two as far as

the nearest road and leave them there. I will arrange suitable transport to get

them on their way back to Japan, you return to my great granddaughter and wait

the summons of our Matriarch. Doubtless when she arrives home there will be

many questions she will want to ask, and I will do what I can to dissuade her

from laying blame in your direction."

"Thank you, Grandmother," the guide bowed to her, "It will be good to see

these two on their way. They have caused nothing but problems ever since they

arrived at Jusenkyo, but I do hope, for the boy's sake, that they get home safe

and sound. I do not want to be here to face the Enforcer should the Matriarch

believe her chosen heir has been dishonored."

"There will be fireworks, of that I have no doubt," Lotion sighed, "But it is

Xian Pu who most concerns me, and how she will take to the news about her

husband. She will need every friend that she has to find the will to endure

what is to follow. Well...that's all for later, get some sleep. I'll prepare a

meal for them to help them on their travels. I want nothing to delay their

departure, so I will make certain our sentries do not see them leaving our

village. The sooner this fool is gone from here the better to my thinking,

especially if either Silk or Comb discover his presence..."

The Jusenkyo guide shuddered at the thought of this. Those two alone were

capable of wrecking untold havoc on the neighborhood if they became unhappy, and

if the Enforcer became involved then the safest place anyone could be was

somewhere over the vast Himalayas, which he had been considering visiting this

time of year anyway by an amazing coincidence. An enraged village of Amazons

was enough to make any sane man consider the beneficial aspects of possible of

defection...

Nabiki awoke to a light tapping on her shoulder, stifling the impulse to make a

sound as she sensed the familiar presence of Genma hovering over her. It was

not yet daybreak and the room she was in was still grey with pre-morning

shadows, but she would know the old man's smell anywhere, even in a latrine.

She started to stir when his hand motioned for her attention.

Curious at what had caused him to wake her up from a good sleep Nabiki turned

her head and found a body nuzzled against hers. It made her tense slightly

until she realized that it was the unconscious body of another woman.

The next instant Nabiki's mind was flooded by the sensation of someone

attempting to drive an ice pick through her left and right eyesockets. She bit

down to prevent a groan as she rubbed her temples and tried to shut out the pain

that threatened to overwhelm her.

She was about to beg that Genma chop her head open to let out the pain when he

passed something into her hand that felt like a pill, not to mention a glass of

water. Without stopping to think about it Nabiki swallowed the pill and washed

it down her leathery throat past a mouth that felt like old seaweed and a tongue

that was swollen up with a rough edge comparable to sandpaper.

A few moments later the pain began to leave her, allowing her to think

coherently again as she started to come to grips with the fact that she was

sleeping in the bed of another woman. Even granted the dim light she had no

difficulty making out the fact of the girl she had been intimate with the night

before, and that was when she became aware of one astonishing feature.

Nabiki was no longer in male form. Her body had been restored to normal female

form, much to her intense delight in spite of the awkward situation. She felt

with a hand to discover no bulge between her legs while her bosoms were full

formed once again and delightfully firm to the touch, albeit no where near as

large as that of her Amazon lover...

Her lover. Nabiki looked down with such tenderness at the innocent face of the

sleeping girl and felt some of her passion from the night before return...and

then she jolted slightly with the realization of what she was thinking. She had

just made love to another woman...AGAIN! For the second time in her life she

had been betrayed by her baser reflexes, only this time with a male body to give

the girl the misleading impression that she had made love to a boy, and who knew

how she would take the news of Nabiki's true gender?

Genma silently pointed towards the door of the hut and Nabiki nodded her

compliance. This was a terrible mess she had gotten herself into and for once

she did not have him to blame for it. The only problem, of course, was how to

get away from the girl who had an arm and leg draped over him? There was a

little delicacy involved in extricating herself from her embrace without waiting

her from her deep slumber...

She managed to do it with some difficulty, but at last Nabiki slipped out from

the bed and stood naked looking down at the girl to make certain she did not

awake prematurely. She silently accepted the clothes that Genma handed her and

followed him outside, not bothering to dress herself until they were in the

safety of an alley.

"I'm glad to see you still have some of your senses with you," Genma remarked

without meaning to sound as scolding as he was, but for once Nabiki reacted like

a little girl being caught doing something naughty and gave him an apologetic

expression.

"Sorry," she whispered, "Don't know what came over me back there. I must have

been really drunk or something..."

"So I gathered," Genma replied, "You didn't even come out of it when I doused

you with hot water to change you back. I had to shake you pretty hard, which

wasn't easy to do without waking the other girl. Fortunately you both were

really out of it and I hardly had to apply pressure-points to see she remained

unconscious."

"I guess I'm going to need to do some apologizing to her when she wakes up,"

Nabiki said as she finished tying on the rope-belt to her pants, then saw the

frown Genma gave her, "What?"

Genma handed her the money-sash to tie about her waist before he answered, "How

much do you remember about yesterday?"

Nabiki felt the sash to be certain it was the proper weight, then she replied,

"Too much, I think. I fought with that girl back there...seems like she's a

pretty good loser, though. People sure were being friendly for some reason..."

"Only natural," Genma replied, "According to their laws you're engaged to marry

the girl you just bedded."

Nabiki froze where she was and looked at him harshly, "That isn't funny."

"Does it look like I'm laughing?" he replied stoically.

Nabiki was feeling the edge of her hangover return as she forced herself to

focus on the words, "She's engaged to marry me?"

"Or kill you," Genma replied, "One of the elders explained it all to me. When

an Amazon loses to a female outsider she's sworn to hunt that girl down and kill

her without hesitation. If she loses to a man she must marry him and make him a

part of their village."

"Marry...?" Nabiki said faintly, "Or kill?"

"That's not all," Genma replied, "A man in this village of women warriors has no

legal status, so you'd be pretty much a kept husband, not allowed to stray very

far or spend time in the presence of another woman, and certainly not permitted

to return home to Japan, not even to see your husband. You see...they have some

surprising traditions here, and because they think you were a man last night..."

"Oh, Kami!" Nabiki hissed, "I gotta get out of here! We can't stay if they're

really going to insist..."

"Husband?" a voice inquired from behind her.

Nabiki's eyes went very wide as she slowly turned around and said, "Husband?"

Xian Pu had awakened from a very contended sleep only to find the space beside

her bed was vacated. Her sensitive ears had heard the murmurings outside in the

alley, however, so she went to investigate and found that strange man with

glasses from the night before talking to her man, so naturally she had made her

presence known, only to receive a surprise when she looked into the face of her

darling husband.

At first she had believed that it was him for he certainly looked the

same...except now that the light was improving she could see that he was somehow

different, not a man at all but a very effeminate looking woman. The way her

chest stood out left no doubt on that whatsoever, and she was also smaller and

lighter looking than the man she had married, even if she had the same

hairstyle, the same short bangs that framed her face, and the same long pigtail

trailing down her backside. If it was possible that her husband had a twin

sister, this one was clearly her as the very pitch of her voice confirmed. The

overall effect was startling, and Xian Pu immediately stood to attention.

From seeming nowhere her bonbori appeared in either hand as she took a defensive

pose and said, "What have you done with my husband?"

"Xian Pu?" the other girl reacted with surprise, then waved her hands in a

deflecting manner and said, "Hey, don't be like that! I can explain

everything...well, sort of..."

Xian Pu lifted her head and stared at the girl, her expression blank, which

encouraged Nabiki to continue, "Um...you live around here, so you must know

about a little place called Jusenkyo..."

"Ju-sen-kyo...?" Xian Pu replied in growing dismay, her bonbori disappearing

as she took a step forward, staring at the girl for a long moment before saying,

"Husband...you turn into a girl when you get wet?"

"Ah...not exactly," Nabiki said reluctantly, "More like the other way

around..."

Xian Pu felt her knees give out under her and she landed on them with growing

horror plain in her expression, "No..."

"Xian Pu," Nabiki said, "I'm sorry, I never meant to hurt you, I

just...well...these things happen..."

"No..." Xian Pu whispered, closing her eyes and wishing with all her might

that this was some horrible nightmare that she would soon awake from.

"Xian Pu?" Nabiki asked in confusion.

"Leave her alone, Niece," Genma urged, "You can't do her any good by staying

here, and as soon as the other villagers wake up we'll be trapped forever inside

this village. You know what they will do to you when they find out you deceived

this girl..."

"I didn't-I wasn't trying-I..." Nabiki said helplessly, sputtering, for once

her legendary gift of gab failing her utterly in the face of the helpless girl's

misery before her, "Xian Pu..."

"Go!" Xian Pu said in clearly enunciated Japanese.

"But..." Nabiki started to say, but Xian Pu got back to her feet and would not

meet her gaze, only pointed towards the edge of the village.

"You go...no stay here!" Xian Pu declared, "Law say kill outsider girl...you no

want Xian Pu do this...no even to betrayer!"

"But I...didn't..." Nabiki faltered, then slowly her hands fell to her sides as

she looked dejectedly at the girl, "I-I'm...I'm sorry..."

"Go," Xian-Pu whispered, still not looking at her, "Leave here now. Please."

It was the please the finally decided Nabiki's course of action, and without

another word she turned around and accepted the burden of her own pack, which

Genma handed to her. They left the village as the sun began to rise in earnest

never looking back as Nabiki felt her misery increasing with the return of her

hangover.

Only when they were on their way did Xian Pu trust herself to look up and stare

at their retreating backsides, and then very softly she murmured, "Wo ai

ni...Ailen..."

It was a singular procession who trudged into the village the next day with

Elder Cologne at their head, escorted by six warriors and one Enforcer, the

latter of whom the other six gave wide berth as if avoiding her attention. They

had just returned from an embassy with their rivals in the Musk Clan without

achieving the treaty they had been after, but surely news such as that could not

account for the grim faces they saw upon their people

Two others came along in the Elder's wake, one a tall woman with fine looks and

long purple hair done up in the traditional hairstyle of a married woman of

Joketsuzoku, the other a prim looking brown haired woman with dark hair set in a

bun, which was far from traditional for her people. The Purple haired woman was

staring at the ground as if lost in thought while her companion was glancing

around with a curious expression. The elder gave no sign of recognizing this,

but her own eyes were strangely furrowed as she saw their fellow villagers were

agitated about something.

"What gives?" said the brown haired woman, "Did somebody die, or did cousin

Mou Tsu do something stupid like return from exile?"

"Hmm?" the purple haired woman beside her asked, "Did you say something?"

"Greetings Elder," a familiar voice addressed them, causing Cologne to halt in

her tracks and turn to regard her longtime rival, Lotion.

"Is there something the matter?" Cologne asked, wondering why her one-time

friend looked both pleased and disappointed about something.

"That depends on what you decide when you hear about what happened," Lotion

explained, "It concerns Shampoo and some outsiders who chanced upon our

village."

"Xian Pu?" the purple haired woman looked up, "What about my daughter?"

"Oh, nothing much, healer," Lotion replied, "It just seems that your daughter

got married while you were out playing midwife, only there is something you

three should know about the Groom..."

Keiko sighed with relief. At long last she had found the village she was

seeking, the one with the stone walls about the perimeter, exactly as Plum

described it. A village full of women warriors, sounded both interesting and

enticing, if only she did not have pressing business that demanded she make

haste and find Nabiki.

For the last ten months she had pursued her former lover across endless miles of

open Chinese territory, always somehow managing to miss meeting her by the last

possible instant, or to get entangled in some local affair that took up too much

of her time and energy. Extricating herself from local politics had often

proven a messy task, and if it were not for her knowning the language she would

have had a tougher time of it. Bad enough some of the local bully boys often

got the impression that she was a western spy because of her red hair and

Amerasian features...

But at last she was going to find Nabiki and have it out with her, then knock

Genma's stupid block off for coming between them after their single night of

passion. Nabiki was going to have to explain why she had broken her promise to

take Keiko with her on her quest through China, it would have made things so

much simpler if they had gone together rather than separately on this trek to

the Qing Hi region. Some of the things she had been forced to do to stay free

and single had been remarkably rough on a girl who thought herself tough enough

to deal with any situation,

Well now, Keiko thought to herself, this might be a challenge and a half if

Nabiki and Genma stay true to their usual habit for starting trouble. She only

hoped that she was in time to prevent a disaster. If only she could have kept

running all through the night instead of needing to rest partway and losing

valuable hours. A full day and a half had elapsed because of this, and now that

she was rested she had hopes of at long last being reunited with her beloved, if

only Nabiki had not done something stupid such as upset one of the locals!

She did not know that she was observed until she caught movement along the edges

near the wall then wondered why they would have sentries about what looked to be

a fairly peaceful village. For that matter why have a wall about their village

in the first place? Did these locals have problems with bandits or their

immediate neighbors? Hardly surprising if those Musk soldiers were any

indication, much though Keiko thought them to be a bunch of drool-boy wimps

since the mere sight of her breasts had been enough to make them easy to over

power. Why then did she had the sense that there was something wrong in the

air, and why did she have this sinking sensation that trouble had once again

centered around Nabiki?

Keiko was almost at the gates when a voice called out to challenge her to a

halt. Keiko turned to one side and saw a girl roughly her own age standing

there with long brown hair and somewhat mannish garb flashing a matching set of

double-headed broad axes. The girl had sapphire eyes that flashed with fire and

her whole attitude towards Keiko was an implicit challenge.

"What do you want outlander?" he grated harshly.

"Ah," Keiko raised her hands to signify a non-threatening manner, "I don't

want trouble, I'm just looking for a pair of friends of mine who I think were

wandering lost in this region. You wouldn't happen to know them, would you? A

young girl and an old man with glasses..."

The other girl's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "Don't you mean a young boy and a

Panda?"

"OH?" Keiko said, realizing that she was not going to like this, "You've met

them?"

"No," the girl replied, "But when I do I'll send them to meet you in Hell!"

All at once the girl unleashed those broad axes of hers, forcing Keiko to dodge

out of the way as one of them sliced the air where she had been standing a

moment before. Fortunately for Keiko she had unslipped her pack off her

shoulders when the girl had first addressed her and was free to tumble backwards

in a series of somersault motions to put distance between her and the ax-

wielder. The backpack was claimed by the other broad ax, which sliced right

through it without hardly impeding its momentum.

Keiko righted herself thirty feet away only to discover one ax was heading

directly at her neck, so she ducked back as fast as her reflexes could handle to

permit the blade to hiss harmlessly over her. Instinct warned her to dusk to

the right as a second ax bisected the area where she had been standing and kept

right on going until it collided with the base of a treetrunk, at which point it

sliced on through as cleanly as a katana through butter.

Keiko heard the snapping of wood and looked up in time to see the tree falling

towards her, so she did the sensible thing and got out of the way in time,

hoping to keep the tree between herself and the other girl. To her horror,

however, she saw the tree begin to fly into pieces as something came chopping

through the bark and branch, laying it out in all directions. The brown haired

girl stepped through the gap she had created and held up her axes in crossed

manner while Keiko gulped in dismay, wondering if this girl were somehow related

to the Tasmanian Devil.

Keiko shrugged her shoulders and took up a fighters crouch to stave off the

inevitable, but before the other girl could attack her a voice called out, "Do

not kill this one. I wish to ask her some questions."

Keiko spared a fraction of her attention to see the strange troll-like figure

perched atop a gnarled wooden staff looking at her with an owlish expression.

Then she noticed a shift in the stance of the brown haired Amazon as that girl

replied, "As you command, Great Grandmother. I will spare her life and leave

her intact for you, beyond that...I make no promise."

Keiko swallowed, realizing that this was going to hurt...more than a little...

Nabiki groaned as she felt alongside her temples. The effects of the hangover

remedy were definitely wearing off, leaving her to face the inevitable

consequences of her own self-indulgence.

"Enjoying yourself?" Genma asked in a smug way that made Nabiki silently promise

retribution for later, "I remember when I had my first hangover...no, wait a

moment. If it was my first then I probably wouldn't remember..."

"Whatever," Nabiki growled, "I am never touching another drop for as long as I

live, so help me!"

"It's not all bad," Genma replied, "The old woman gave us directions to find the

nearest train station, and from there it's only a couple of weeks or so until we

can find a ship to take us to Japan. Too bad we didn't find that cure we were

after..."

"You're telling me?" Nabiki growled, feeling her stomach growl with hunger, "I

just hope nobody's following us this time. The way I'm feeling right now I

might as well go ahead and let them kill me."

"Cheer up," Genma smiled, "Think of your family. Soon you'll be home and you

can tell them all about your amazing adventures."

"Oh yeah," Nabiki sniffed, "Like you dumping me into that cursed spring that

changed me into a guy and then getting us in trouble in that Amazon village?

I'm sure my father and your wife will be overjoyed to hear about that."

"Ah..." Genma thought about it then said, "On second thought, travel does

broaden the mind and there are places we haven't yet visited..."

"Oh goody," Nabiki rolled her eyes, then regretted the gesture, "More places to

get into trouble. Forget it, Pops, I've had it with this around-the-world

nonsense. I want to go back to school and try to pick up a normal life like

other girls my age. I'm tired of letting you lead me from one complicated mess

to another, it's time to go back and pick up the pieces of my existence."

"It...wasn't all your fault you know," Genma said after a long moment, "What

happened back there..."

"Shut up!" Nabiki snapped, "I don't want to talk about it with you. I don't

even want to be reminded. In fact, I hope I never hear about that place again.

I'm never going back there, and I...I want to forget the whole thing ever

happened."

"Whatever you say, Niece," Genma replied, though when he eyed her sidelong he

saw the sadness of her expression, the look for forlorn longing such as she had

worn on the day after they had abandoned Arigami Keiko. He hoped Nabiki would

get over matters in time, though a nagging doubt informed him that the issue

with those Amazons was a long way from concluded...

The Present:

Tendo Nabiki, aka Kaneda, stood before the altar in a rented tuxedo gazing at

his bride with fond adoration. The Magistrate reading off the vows of the

simple civil service could not help thinking that such a handsome couple were

destined to be together, even if the bride did insist on using an odd hair

coloring dye. He never would get used to the ways of these teenagers...

Saotome Genma stood on hand, having played the part of ring-bearer for the

couple, while Soun had given away the bride and was now weeping openly, though

whether from pride or sorrow no one on hand could have stated. Nodoka eyed the

two men with sly patience and knew that-in spite of last minute protests from

all sides-they were as overcome with the happiness of the couple as anyone else

present.

Ranma, Ukyo, Akane, Ryoga, Perfume, Ryonami, Keiko and Kodachi all stood on hand

to serve as witnesses to the union of Shampoo and Kaneda. Kasumi stood close by

as Shampoo's Maid in waiting, smiling past tears in her eyes as she looked upon

her "brother's" features with a mixture of pride, longing and sorrow. Cologne

and Happosai stood to one side regarding their mutual students with such pride

that one would have suspected them both of being the grandparents.

The only significant figure not in attendance was Kuno Tatewaki, who had vowed

to break up the ceremony rather than allow the foul "Kaneda" to make his claim

on the fair Shampoo. He was presently unconscious and heavily wrapped in chains

in a closet at the Kuno mansion, the combined efforts of Keiko and his sister,

who had their own personal reasons for seeing the wedding to its consummation.

At last the moment came where Kaneda slipped the ring on Shampoo's finger, then

kissed his bride with tenderness, at which point everyone broke out into

applause in the tiny chapel. The kiss went on for quite a while as though the

newlyweds were unaware of anything else but each other, yet eventually they came

up for air, then Kaneda flashed a grin at the others and held up Shampoo's ring

for all to see while Shampoo, for her part, glowed radiantly with utter

contentment.

Ukyo felt Perfume slip a hand into her palm, and after only a moment of

hesitation she clasped that hand back, then her other hand sought out Ranma's.

Technically the wedding ceremony was only pro-forma, a legal cheat as Kaneda was

only a fictional name on the document aimed at giving the marriage legitimacy in

the eyes of the Japanese government. Shampoo was pregnant and would need full

medical coverage in another few months, so the document was actually to give

Kaneda the authority to act on Shampoo's behalf, the original marriage not being

recognized in Japan.

And how soon until she herself got to wear a bridal veil...or a Groom's tux for

that matter? Ukyo was very much in the same spot as Nabiki had been, even

absent a formal marriage ceremony. Perfume was her wife, and now that she had

accepted this she had to make allowances to legitimize their union. But how did

Ranma feel about all this? That was the one mystery she had yet to solve, and

it would likely be the thorniest question to arise from the Amazon situation.

Just the same she was looking forward to the moment when she could lead one or

both of her beloveds down the isle. This thought oddly made her think a moment

about her father, then she turned to Perfume and murmured, "Before we leave

there's something I've got to do, Per-chan. Know where the nearest phone is

at?"

The Enforcer hardly needed to glance as she pointed to the rear end of the

chapel. Her infallible direction sense left no question in Ukyo's mind that the

phone would be there, and it would be in good working order.

Keiko sighed as she clasped hands with Kodachi, envying Shampoo yet feeling

happy for Nabiki. Her first true love was doing the honorable thing in

consummating her Amazon marriage. Keiko could find no fault in this and

contented herself to a wistful longing as she wondered what it would have been

like to walk the isle with Nabiki. Not Kaneda, however...she was not prepared

to go that far, even if it was all right with Kodachi...

The time came for Shampoo to toss the bridal bouquet over her shoulder, and all

the girls in attendance crowded in with hopeful expressions, even Perfume, who

found this custom rather quaint, just as she had claimed that Western Marriage

ceremonies were needlessly complicated. The white roses provided by Kodachi

sailed up and everyone raised their hands except the one person to whom the

roses soared with unerring precision. Kasumi gasped as the roses appeared

almost in her lap, and she caught them reflexively as the thought of letting

them spill onto the ground was simply not to be contemplated.

As everyone else gave curious looks Kasumi's way, Nabiki/Kaneda turned to his

wife and said, "You aimed for my sister?"

"Thought she need it more than others," Shampoo replied, "She deserve be happy,

no always mope about Kaneda-husband. She very nice girl, and Shampoo think she

find someone special."

"I hope you're right, dear," Nabiki murmured back, then the two of them began to

get pelted with rice, so they made a hasty dash towards the waiting carriage for

the getaway they had planned, not to mention a full weekend along the beachside.

There was a second honeymoon for the two of them to get on with, and neither was

willing to delay a single moment as they ran off together, husband and wife now

and forever, with a bright new future beckoning with possibilities unending...

Continued.

Comments/Criticism/Can't Complain about the Weather?: shadowmane

Ukyo and Perfume take the spotlight as each girl reflects on the separate paths

of their lives and the strange circumstances that brought them closer

together...be there.

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All related chapters of this series can be found there along with my

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